Just Because We're Different
by BotchedRose22
Summary: Living when people fear you is difficult. Especially when it's because of being different. Callie would know. That's why she didn't want to live. But when a friendly monster unknowingly saves her life, she decides otherwise. He also knows. It's amazing what mutual understanding can do, right? (Papyrus/OC. M for themes/language and eventual smut.)
1. Chapter 1

**Why? Because I wanted to, that's why! Also, well, there needs to be more love for Papyrus. Everyone's on about Sans, and I can definitely understand. It's not like I'm not in the same boat. But Papyrus needs some attention too. I've had a soft spot for him since day one. So anyways, I really hope you guys like this story! This takes place right after the Pacifist Ending and goes on from there... so, as is polite, I will say "Spoilers!" It's got some upsetting themes and topics, warning you all now, but I don't want to make this a downer. So let's get this started!**

* * *

Callie had been climbing for a while now. She didn't know exactly what she was looking for, but... if the legends were true, she'd find out soon enough. Hopefully very soon. Before too long, someone would come looking for her. Someone might already have been. It all depended on when Sara got back to the dorm room and found that Callie wasn't there.

She sighed. This wasn't a nice thing to do. Not her parents, not to Sara, not even the school. But she couldn't keep on going the way she was. Therapy didn't help, because it couldn't change the situation. It couldn't change people. High School had been bad in those regards, but somehow college was infinitely worse. Gritting her teeth through it all wasn't helping anymore. The depression was steadily getting more severe, and Callie could barely stand to look in the mirror anymore. Something had to give.

So here she was, climbing Mt. Ebott, looking for... well... whatever caused people to disappear. While that didn't explicitly mean 'death', it was certainly heavily implied, and that was good enough for her. Callie liked the idea of disappearing over any other method. She wouldn't want someone to have to see her blood-soaked, or blue, or hanging. That was a horrible thing to put another person through. This was just... cleaner. Besides, with this, there was more mystery to it. Any other way was just reaching the same end by different means. At least by doing this, she'd know what happened to the others, even if it was only herself that would know.

The sun was setting. Things were getting darker by the minute. Callie was surprisingly indifferent to this fact. Perhaps since she no longer cared about her own life, the old fear of the dark and all it contained had no more baring on her.

How far up was she? Did it matter? Oh well, this wasn't really a time to wonder about that. She was really just getting impatient with this, as she'd set out about four hours ago and her legs were screaming at her.

With a sigh, Callie sat down on a moss-covered rock. She figured even if people were looking for her, it was going to be a while before the deduced her location, let alone come climbing up after her. So for now, inevitable death or disappearance or whatever could wait a few minutes.

"Ah, thank God." She said, breathing out.

Callie glanced at the sky. Blue had been replaced by rich orange and pink, with just a pinch of evening purple seeping in. It was a beautiful sunset.

"My last sunset." Callie whispered. "Glad I wore my contacts for it."

A solemn smile spread on her face. The scenery around her got blurry at the edges as tears began to well in her eyes. All at once Callie buried her face in her hands and began to sob.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She began to say to the forest. "Mama... Dad... Sara... God... I'm really, really sorry. Forgive me, please. Please... please..."

Her words dissolved into wails and gasps. Callie wanted nothing more than see them again and apologize before she died. It wasn't their fault and they had done all they could for her. But no make-up, no colored contacts, nothing, could make her into something she wasn't. Eventually anyone she got close to would have to see the real her, and that hardly ever worked out.

The sobbing got more quiet after a while, until they were nothing more than soft moans and gasping intakes of air. Callie was sure she was going to have to keep moving soon, lest she lose her courage and return to her dorm with a half-assed explanation and a need for a shower. But just as she was about to stand, Callie heard footsteps, which were accompanied by a male voice.

"Oh I can't wait to introduce myself! There are so many opportunities for new friends!"

She stood up. The footsteps were getting louder, and coming in Callie's direction. Someone... someone was coming down from the mountain. _Down._ That meant they had climbed up the mountain and... survived. But how was that possible? Were the legends wrong? Was-

But she was cut off by the source of the noise stepping through the trees. The two of them locked... she couldn't even call it locking eyes. It _had_ no eyes. It had no _skin_. It had no organs or muscles or anything. It was the bare bones of a human being, literally. It was just... a skeleton. A skeleton that was standing there. Standing. There. And if that wasn't strange enough on its own, it was also wearing clothing. High red boots, a pair of shorts with a gold belt, a strange white top that puffed out like... like some kind of bizarre knight's armor, a red cape, and gloves. And Callie thought _she_ looked freaky.

Callie was caught between horror and confusion, and had no idea what the next move should be. Luckily, the skeleton was the on to make the next move.

"Greetings! Wowie, you're the first human I've seen on the surface! It's a pleasure to meet you. I am The Great Papyrus, former member of the Royal Guard. I assume we won't be needing it anymore, anyway."

The skeleton... The Great Papyrus as he called himself... offered a gloved hand towards Callie. Not wanting to somehow make him angry, she took it. The glove was very soft, and she could feel the bones beneath it. It frightened her. He shook her hand with vigor.

"Oh forgive me! I haven't asked your name. I suppose it would be confusing to just call you "human" if there are so many of you up here! So, what is your name?"

"I... I'm... C-Callie."

"You speak like Dr. Alphys! Perhaps I should introduce you two."

Who could that be? Were they a skeleton like this... she supposed she could it a guy, though surely there was nothing that would validate that... or were they something else, something even more bizarre? Then again, what could be weirder than a sentient skeleton?

"PAPYRUS, WAIT!" A woman screamed. Her voice was somewhat gritty, and very out of breath.

Out of the trees, another strange being emerged. This one looked aquatic in nature, with greenish skin and membranous ears. A cascade of red hair fell around her face, covering one of her eyes.

"Undyne!" The skeleton said, excited. "I'm so glad you could join us! I've met our first surface human, Callie! Callie, this is Undyne!"

The fish lady took a few heaving breaths before walking up to Callie. Though only one eye was visible, it studied her with a piercing, critical gaze. Callie stood very still and tried to look neutral. She may have wanted to die, but being murdered by a fish was not how she wanted to go out.

After a few minutes, Undyne's face soften and she gave Callie a wide smile.

"Nice to meet ya! Name's Undyne, but Pap here already gave that away."

"H-hi."

"Timid, are ya? That makes sense. I'm sure you're not used to seeing monsters."

Well, she wasn't wrong.

"No."

"Sorry if we scared ya, Callie."

"It's... it's okay."

Fear was dissolving more into awe at this point, anyway.

Papyrus spoke again. "So where do you come from, Callie? Are there other humans around here? What are you doing on this mountain?"

Callie didn't know how the answer that. She didn't want to admit what she was here for, especially not to these monsters, but it was a question that needed answering. She floundered for a minute, eyes darting around as she thought of an explanation. The skeleton waited expectantly for her response. But after a couple minutes of silence, he seemed to notice something. Maybe it was body language, maybe it was the fact that Callie looked like a mess from crying, face red and clumps of white hair stuck to her face, but Papyrus realized, probably for the first time, that something was troubling her.

"Well... if you do not want to tell us, that is fine too! But would you mind directing us to the nearest town? Us monsters would love to reintroduce ourselves to your kind!"

"Y-yeah... just go straight down, and there will be a road there. Follow it, and uh... you'll find the town. But I mean... I can't say how they'll react."

Callie feared she might be leading these creatures to their death.

"Yeah, we know. That's why we have an ambassador. They're still up on the mountain, I think." Undyne said.

"O-oh... okay."

"So must we wait for Frisk?"

"Yep. 'Fraid so, Papyrus. Why do you think I ran after you? I couldn't let you barge into a human village without our ambassador!"

"Even though I'm the mascot?"

"Well yeah! Uh... we couldn't have the ambassador go without the mascot either, right?"

Papyrus paused. "You're right!"

"Yeah! So let's just wait here for Frisk and everyone. Okay?"

"Right! And then we can introduce them to our new friend here!" Papyrus exclaimed. He turned back to Callie. "Right?"

Callie thought about it. He wanted her to stay. Papyrus had, in some way, an idea that she was upset about something. How much he had deduced from that, she had no idea. Probably not too much, but enough. If she said "no thanks" and went on to do what she was going to do, either him or Undyne was bound to follow her.

Not only that, but this discovery of a whole other... well... race of beings, kind of killed her dedication to suicide, at least for now. She had a very strong feeling that they were the reason, in whatever way, for the disappearances. Perhaps any remaining ideas about disappearing up here were dashed by their very presence on the surface, anyways. Maybe people... maybe they fell into their world? That seemed probable. So even if she fell, they would know where she was.

"Yeah. Yeah... I'll meet everyone." Callie said.

Papyrus, by some stretch of physical laws, smiled brightly at her. Callie took a moment to process that. That smiling skeleton and his fishy friend saved her life. Huh.

This was not how she thought this day would end.

 **A/N: Thank you all so much for reading! I hope this was good. Please tell me how I did and what I can do to improve. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Things had progressively become more and more surreal as the evening went on. Callie had been introduced to the whole gang, so to speak, and it was quite an assortment. There was Dr. Alphys, the little dinosaur woman in a lab coat. Mettaton, the ghost powered robot designed by said doctor. She even met the King and Queen of monsters, a divorced pair of goat people. The Queen had a small child of indeterminate sex with her, who Callie assumed to be Frisk. So they had a child as an ambassador? How was that going to work? Callie didn't know, and didn't feel she had any right to tell these monsters how to go about their politics. It was just really bizarre. But even with all this weirdness, the skeletons were somehow still the most mind-boggling.

Oh yeah, brothers. Papyrus had an older brother, who called himself Sans. Callie was somewhat curious about how that worked, them being siblings. That meant skeletons had families. They could have children. But... how? With what genetic material? Callie had these questions, but kept them to herself. She knew the feeling of having near strangers ask really personal questions like that., and wouldn't want to be that asshole.

So, she just sort of walked in a stunned silence as the others marveled at the world around them. They gulped in every new sight, every ray of dying sunshine and sound of a random forest animal. These monsters were just as mystified by their surroundings as she was by... well.. them. It was quite a thing to watch.

Papyrus had kept close to Callie during this entire trek down the mountain, a huge grin plastered on his face. Whether he stayed near because she was the first human he'd seen above ground or because of whatever he'd noticed when they'd met, Callie wasn't sure. All she knew was that he was all too eager to meet so many new faced and explore everything the surface world had to offer. She could only hope that said surface world would treat him better than they'd treated her. Then again, if they isolated her for looking different, what were they going to do to all of these people who weren't even human? It frightened her.

The group approached the edge of town. Callie had been too shocked to really think of a game plan here. She had a hell of a lot of explaining to do. Why was she on the mountain? Who were all these people? Where did they come from? Oh Jesus, this was going to be-

"Callie! Thank you so much for escorting us to the human village!" A voice interrupted her thoughts. When Callie turned, she saw the Queen giving her a tender smile.

"Oh.. Uh... thank you, Your Majesty." It felt weird to say, but it seemed only respectful.

She chuckled. "Oh no, please call me Toriel. I haven't really been queen of anything in a long time, and now... well... there just doesn't seem to be reason to be." The expression on her face was content, serene.

"Alright... Toriel. We're glad to have you here. Well, I am anyway. The others..."

"I know." Toriel said, nearly whispering. "Your kind, unfortunately, was the whole reason for our imprisonment, amongst other things. We're all scared, even if none of us say it. We just hope this time it will be different. Now we have an ambassador, a good-natured human to vouch for us."

Callie rubbed the back of her neck. Looking around, she saw all of the smiling faces and joyful conversation. Everyone was planning for their futures. It seemed as though this was the first time they'd even seen themselves having a future. Even though she'd only met them a bit ago, Callie felt a pang of dread at the idea of everyone's reactions. She had an idea.

Though she wasn't sure if this was the best move, Callie began to speak. "Say Toriel?"

"Yes, Callie?"

"I'll uh... I'll vouch for you guys too, if you think it'll help."

Despite how kind they all seemed, Callie couldn't help but wonder if this was a bad idea. Maybe this whole nice thing was just an act. What if she just offered to help the enemy of her species? Then again, judging a book by its cover and all that. Callie would know a thing or two about it. It wasn't fair to judge them too harshly, especially when they've been nothing but kind to her, a rare occurrence she might add.

"Oh yes, that would be very helpful! Thank you so much, Callie. You're very kind. We will need all of the human support we can get if we're going to coexist."

Eh, Callie already liked these guys better than a lot of humans she met. They didn't pry or prod or call her names. The first monster she met greeted her with a smile and a handshake as she was about to end her life. Why not defend those that made you feel welcomed? Besides, it'd at least give her a reason to keep going.

"No problem."

The king stepped up.

"Are we ready to go down, Tori?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't you "Tori" me. But yes. Callie here has offered to vouch for us alongside Frisk."

The king grinned with joy and clapped his hands together. "Splendid! There may be hope for our reintroduction after all!"

God, I hope so, Callie thought.

* * *

The band of monsters walked through town together, led by the king and the two humans. Frisk was holding Callie's hand, humming along as they walked into town. They were an adorable little child.

But an adorable companion couldn't distract from the reactions of everyone around them. They were exactly what Callie had been fearing. Some ran screaming, some started to call the police, quite a few began recording on their phones, and others still began to take out weapons. Neither the King nor Toriel seemed frightened, only solemn and stoic. The group was headed towards the center of town. Callie did not know what the plan was, only that the King... Asgore, as she learned his name was... was going to deliver some kind of speech there.

When they got to their destination, Asgore stepped forward, ahead of everyone else. The other monsters sort of gathered in a little half-circle behind him, like some kind of back-up. People from all over town began to gather around, either ready to attack or just standing in awe. The goat king just stood there for a long time, waiting for everyone to quiet down.

"Humans." He said, when things were mostly silent.

The funny thing though was that when he spoke, it went from mostly silent to dead silent.

"I am King Asgore, and I am a monster. My people hail from Mt. Ebott, or more accurately, from underneath it."

There were a few hushed whispers here and there, some of which Callie could make out snippets of. "The legends..." Someone said. "... Disappearances..." Someone else added. Words of that nature floated about within the crowds.

"After thousands of years of imprisonment, my people have been freed. We have our ambassador, Frisk, to thank for that."

Frisk stepped forward and waved at the awed throng of people.

"Hi." The child spoke for the first time since Callie had met them. Their voice was just as ambiguous as the rest of them. "I'm Frisk. These are my friends. They just want to be able to live like any of you guys do. Please, we're asking for your mercy. For you acceptance."

Nobody seemed to know what to say. The monsters were waiting for the humans' response, and the humans were waiting for some kind of attack. As the silence grew longer, Callie could feel the air grow heavy with tension. It made her nervous. No one on either side seemed to want to make a move. After several minutes, Callie decided she couldn't take it anymore. She stepped forward.

"The child is correct. These people want nothing more than to coexist." Though she was unsure of her own voice, Callie tried to sound as convincing as possible.

From out of the crowd, a lone woman emerged. She a lovely thing, with rich black curls and hazel eyes. A bit on the shorter side, but it suited her. As soon as she locked onto the person speaking, the woman sprinted up and grabber her by the shoulders.

"Callie! Holy shit! Where were you? Are you okay?" She looked around at all the weird creatures Callie was accompanied by. "What... what the hell is going on?"

"Sara, I'm... I'm fine."

That was a filthy lie, but she wasn't about to admit the truth in front of all these people.

"I uh... made some friends."

The two turned and looked at everyone. Most of them were still in a state of high anxiety and alert. Papyrus waved enthusiastically at the new human.

"... You uh... you sure did, Callie."

The two both gave awkward chuckles, then turned back to the situation at hand. Everything was still in a deadlock, both sides unmoving. While any tension between the two of them had vanished, everything outside was only getting worse. In the distance, Callie heard a helicopter.

She sure as hell did.

 **A.N.: Everyone thank so much for the feedback! I'm really glad you all enjoyed the first chapter. Hopefully you guys are still enjoying this. Anyway, I have a couple things to say about this chapter. One, I don't know if I've made it obvious what exactly is different about Callie. I plan on making it clear next chapter. If you already know, great! If not, feel free to guess. Two, since Frisk's gender is up to the player of the game to decide, I want to assign one. for this story But I know people generally refer to Frisk as "they", so that's what I used for this chapter. I'm just letting everyone know in advance. Hope that's cool. Well, as I said, hope you guys enjoyed. Thank you so so much, and let me know what you all think! Until next time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! So just to let you know, this is kind of a long one. I hope you all don't mind. Anyway, I hope it turned out good!**

* * *

The integration wasn't easy. The public and the government alike were reeling at the fact that monsters existed, and were unsure how to deal with it. Some met the situation with skepticism and doubt. Some were afraid and left the town. Others were outright hostile. Acceptance was going to be a slow process, everyone knew.

But, according to Asgore, this was still a much better response than he'd expected. The government was making an effort to negotiate things and work out a way for the monsters to live in society.

Callie couldn't do as much as she'd hoped. She wasn't too versed in politics and she wasn't really well-spoken. Frisk could at least tell his story about the Underground, how he'd formed strong friendships with them and knew they were all genuinely good-natured creatures. Surprisingly effective ambassador he was.

She figured the only thing she could do besides agree with Frisk was... well... make friends with them herself and show people that there was nothing to be afraid of. It wouldn't help her popularity much with the people in town, but considering people were freaked by her already, that didn't matter much.

Besides, though it wasn't a lot, speaking for the monsters at least gave Callie some sense of purpose and worth. That's something she hadn't had in wee-... mon-... a long time.

"Callie! We are leaving in five minutes! No boondoggling!" Papyrus called from the outside the dorm.

"Gimme a minute, Pap!"

So, here she was, getting ready to go out with her newly acquired group of friends. Well... a couple of them, anyway. Toriel was starting her new teaching job, Asgore was up to his horns in negotiations and paperwork, Undyne and Alphys were busy congregating with government scientists and comparing findings...

So that left Papyrus and Sans. They had invited her to come see their new apartment and have dinner. Well, by "they" she meant Papyrus, who seemed rather eager to befriend her. Sans... Callie didn't know what to make of Sans. He wasn't rude or anything, there was just something about him that seemed... almost indifferent, but not quite. It was difficult to describe. Ah well, she'd probably learn more as she got to talk with him.

Callie finished her make-up and turned to Sara.

"How do I look?"

She gave Callie a warm smile. "You look great."

Callie had thrown on a pink sun dress that made her skin look a little less sickly white, and some coral lipstick to disguise her pale lips. Her white hair fell down to her chest in artificial curls, framing her oval face. The attribute Callie tried to draw the least attention to was her eyes, which looked red in most lights though they were actually greyish. Sara knew Callie had been bullied for her albinism for the majority of her life, and was trying her best to be supportive.

Honestly, she was one of the few people in Callie's life who had been supportive at all, besides her parents. Even now, with the whole "monster" situation, she was encouraging Callie with her mission. Maybe that was just because it was the most energized she'd seen Callie since she'd met her. Callie's depression wasn't a secret, and Sara had known it was getting worse. She'd been trying whatever she could to help, introducing her to her friends and offering to set up dates, but that didn't change anything. Her friends avoided the "creepy albino girl" or treated her like she was mentally handicapped. The dates bailed as soon as they got a good look at her. So if befriending the monsters was keeping Callie from possibly doing something regrettable, then she was gonna support it.

Did Sara know exactly how close it had come to that? Probably, as she'd been keeping a close eye on Callie since that night she went up the mountain, but she had also never explicitly asked the burning question. Maybe she was waiting until Callie wanted to talk about it.

"Now go on, Cal. Don't 'boondoggle'."

Callie stepped out to meet Papyrus, who had since acquired a new wardrobe. He still had on his red scarf/cape, but had traded in his armor for a T-shirt and jeans. Which was certainly an interesting sight.

"Ah! I see you are ready at last."

"Yep. I'm ready. Thanks for inviting me out."

"But of course, Callie. How else could I get to know you, my new friend?"

She shrugged. "True."

"Then we're off!" He said, grabbing Callie by the hand.

* * *

The apartment was a short walk from the campus, on the ground floor of an older complex. Since quite a few people got the hell out of dodge, there were a lot of vacancies. Luckily landlords were eager to refill those empty spaces and get back the income. Not to mention the fact that monster currency, being gold and all, was worth quite a bit more than human money. This was why the brothers, as well as quite a few other monsters, found homes here pretty quickly.

Callie and Papyrus stepped inside. It was a nice enough place, nothing visibly broken or sub-par. Callie had secretly feared something like that, the landlords giving the monsters the worst housing they had to offer. She was pleased that this was not the case. The floors were old but decent hardwood, and the kitchen area looked almost new. To the left was the living room, where a couch had recently been put in. Upon that couch, Sans was sleeping soundly.

"Of course! I decide to have a guest over and he's just sleeping like the lazybones he is!"

"Ah it's alright, Papyrus. Let him sleep."

"But it's incredibly rude!"

Callie put a hand on his... er... shoulder. Well, his humerus and scapula, which would be just beneath the shoulder. Yeah, touching bone instead of flesh was going to take some getting used to.

"I don't mind. We all need rest."

Callie understood the need to sleep at odd hours of the day. Sometimes out of exhaustion, sometimes out of depression. Whatever it was with him, she didn't want to disturb his peace.

Papyrus sighed. "Alright. He's lucky you're such an understanding guest."

"Aww, thanks."

"You're quite welcome! Now come along! For what kind of host would I be if I didn't give you a tour?"

The skeleton proceeded to lead Callie around the rest of the apartment. There was a long hallway down which were two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a little area for doing laundry. Callie was kind of curious about what skeletons would need with a bathroom (aside from showering, but even that brought up some questions), but she definitely wasn't going to ask about it. For one, it was completely inappropriate to do so. Two, it was probably best if she didn't know.

Papyrus took Callie to his room. This might have seemed fishy under other circumstances, but he seemed pure enough in his intentions to where she wasn't worried. There just something very sincere about Papyrus, like what he presented was what he was laying out. No tricks. No lies. Besides, Callie didn't know if he could well... HAVE any other intentions. Again, not a question to ask.

The room wasn't much at the moment, but she was sure it'd get more character to it as they got settled in. There were stacks of organized books along the back wall, a few unopened cardboard boxes, and a bed that was little more than a mattress with white sheets and a pillow.

"My brother and I left most of our belongings from the Underground behind."

"I can understand that. You want to leave the bad parts of your lives in the past."

"Oh it wasn't bad! Sans just didn't want to carry all of that stuff down the mountain! But I suppose it was for the best, since there are so many new things to fill our home with. For instance..." he walked over to the books. "I got all of these from the local library. There's so much to learn up here!"

Callie smiled. "Well I'm glad to hear that, Papyrus. If you ever have questions about this world, I'd be happy to tell you what I can. People can be a good source of information on things books can't teach."

"As a matter of fact, there is one! I've had this theory that I've wanted to prove for a while, and you just might have the answer I'm looking for!"

"Shoot."

"Are humans descended from skeletons?"

Callie wasn't exactly sure how to answer that one.

"I mean... not... exactly... we're kind of..." How would she put this? "Part skeleton. We're skeletons wrapped in organs and skin and all that."

Both of them were quiet for a minute. Callie was worried she might've freaked him out or something until he did that weird impossible smile again.

"Wowie! That's very interesting. We're even more closely related than I assumed. No wonder I made friends with the first human I met, since I'm so close to being one already! Maybe that's why..." He tapered off, his smile wavering.

His expression changed into that of someone who was recalling more depressing days. The way his shoulders slumped and his head slowly began to lower reminded Callie of... well... herself. She didn't know what he was remembering, but she felt that knew the feeling associated with it.

Callie began to take a step towards him, perhaps for a comforting hug or just to show her concern. She knew that just having someone there caring about you could do wonders. But just as she started to get close, he seemed to shake his head and snap out of it.

"Anyways, it's almost time for dinner! You must be hungry by now."

Callie hadn't really paid attention to it, but was beginning to feel the tell-tale pangs of hunger within her stomach.

"Yeah, actually."

"Well you're in for a treat! I've been taking lessons and studying human cookbooks for a while now, and I'm making you some of my famous spaghetti!"

"Aww, you didn't have to do that."

"Nonsense! You're my guest! It would be rude of me to keep my wonderful cooking from you."

Papyrus once again took her by the hand, this time leading her into the kitchen. He pulled out a chair and had Callie sit at a counter that separated the kitchen from the living room. He really was a sweet guy. For the first time in quite a while, Callie was actually enjoying herself.

She watched as Papyrus pulled out a container of sauce from the fridge and transferred it to a pot.

"I made this sauce yesterday in preparation for your visit, as I heard having it sit overnight makes it more flavorful!"

Callie couldn't help but feel charmed. He did that just because she was coming over?

"Thank you so much, Papyrus."

"You're welcome, Callie. Everything will be ready soon, I just have to boil the noodles and heat up the sauce."

While he went about doing all that, Callie decided to make more conversation.

"So what do you want to do now that you're up here?"

"As far a job, I was thinking about becoming a chef. When I was Underground, all I wanted to do was be part of the Royal Guard. But since they've disbanded... I figured my love of cooking would be the next best thing to pursue!"

"I think that's a great idea. Let me know when you find a job and I'll be sure to drop by for lunch."

She had some worries about this. Finding a job might prove difficult, since people were still so skeptical of monsters. Hopefully some kind of anti-discrimination laws would be passed soon. Toriel being given her teaching job was kind of a test-run by the government. Hopefully that'd work out and get things rolling. So for now, she could at least be encouraging.

"So tell me, Papyrus, what's your favorite thing about the surface?"

"The opportunity for friends, of course! I'm always looking to meet new people."

"How nice!"

"Indeed! I'd say it's already been a rousing success!"

"Fantastic! You're already meeting a lot of nice people up here?"

To be honest, she was surprised. With the way people had been treating monsters, she didn't figure people had been quick to be friendly.

"Yes! I've already met you, and it only took me two minutes up on the surface to do so."

Well that was certainly... not the answer she expected. Callie was kind of taken aback. No-one had ever considered being her friend a thing to be too proud of. It sounded like flattery, but there was not a hint of that artificial charm or smoothness that flattery usually stank to high heaven of. He said it like it was just a fact. He meant it. It made her feel so...welcomed. Accepted.

"T-thank you. I'm really glad I met you too."

She really was, more than he could know.

He smiled and began to hum a little tune as he prepared the food, a tune she'd never heard before but found herself enjoying. Soon enough everything was ready and Callie was being served a heaping plate of pasta. Papyrus gave her an expectant look as she took her first bite.

The noodles were a tad undercooked, and the sauce had a little too much spice, but it wasn't bad. She gave the skeleton a thumbs up as she finished chewing.

"It's tasty."

"Really? Wowie! I am getting better at this!"

She smiled. He seemed so happy that she enjoyed his food. Papyrus grabbed a plate for himself and took a seat next to her. She was curious as to how him eating was going to work. As she continued to work on her own food, Callie glanced at her host. Whenever spaghetti went into his... err... mouth... it disappeared. It didn't slide out of his teeth, it didn't fall down from his jaw onto his shirt... nothing. He ate it like any human being would. It was bizarre, but she wasn't going to comment.

By the time they'd both finished, it'd grown quite dark. Callie decided to call it a night, as she had an early class the next day and couldn't afford to miss too much sleep.

"Alright then. I shall escort you so that you get home safely!"

Ah, he really was a sweetheart.

* * *

As the two walked through the chilly evening, Callie couldn't help but feel as if they were being watched. Maybe it was paranoia, maybe it was the fact that she feared someone attacking Papyrus for being what he was, but she just couldn't shake it. She constantly checked for any moving shadows or the glint of watching eyes, but her poor vision made it difficult to do so.

So instead she tried to calm her nerves a bit.

"Thanks for the lovely evening, Papyrus."

"It was my pleasure, Callie! It was wonderful to hang out with you."

Callie smiled.

"Maybe next time you can bring some of your other friends along! I'd love to entertain a group."

Callie's smile disappeared. Papyrus noticed this and stopped walking. It was quiet for a minute. Papyrus moved to face Callie, giving her a concerned expression.

"I... look, Papyrus..."

"Do you not want me to meet your friends?"

"Oh no no no no, it's not that. It's not that at all." The last thing she'd want to do make him think she was embarrassed of being associated with him.

"It's just... look, when people see me, they see a... a... a freak. They see a girl with twitching red eyes and the complexion of a corpse. It scares them off."

Papyrus paused for a long time before replying.

"So they don't even try to talk to you?" He sounded more solemn than surprised when he asked this.

"No."

"So you..."

Callie sighed. "I have all of two friends right now. My roommate Sara, and you. That's a kind of a new record for me." She was starting to feel the weight of her own words.

"Nobody wants to be _friends_ with the creepy albino."

It stung to say aloud.

"Nobody even really wants to _talk_ to the creepy albino."

But it kind of felt good to get out.

"And God forbid someone asks you to _date_ the creepy albino. That's how it's always been, and that's..."

She stopped, seeing a very troubled expression on Papyrus's face.

"I-I'm sorry. I got carried away."

Papyrus didn't answer.

Callie waited.

He still didn't answer.

If anything, he just seemed to look more and more upset with every passing moment. It was starting to worry her. She feared she'd said way too much, way too early. God damn it, she knew better than this. Unloading all her problems like that was only going to drive people away more. She should've-

"Callie." He finally spoke.

"...Yes?"

"It is clear you're very unhappy."

She sighed. "Yeah. You figured that out, huh?"

"I knew from the beginning. I can recognize unhappiness when I see it."

"Oh?"

"Yes! But I promise I will make sure you are sad no longer! I will figure out a way to make you happy again, fear not!"

Callie doubted that, but could appreciate his kindness.

"Thank you, Papyrus. You're... you're a really great guy."

Papyrus smiled, took her hand, and they continued their walk back to the dorms. Funny thing was, after this exchange, Callie no longer felt as if they were being watched.

 **A/N: Wow, that really was long! Thanks for reading all that! I hope you guys are enjoying the story. Let me know if I can make any changes or if I'm doing good. Thanks so much for all the support!**


	4. Chapter 4

It seemed as if everyone suddenly had a lot more time to spend with her. Toriel would ask Callie to join her at the library. Undyne and Alphys would want to give her cooking lessons and watch movies. Asgore even invited her to his home for tea. She was really enjoying their company, as they were all a pleasure to be around, but the girl had a feeling there was something to how often they were taking her out. While Callie had been trying to make friends with the monsters anyways, this sudden, near-constant influx of invites didn't feel like a coincidence.

Or maybe Callie just wasn't used to having friends. Part of her was in disbelief that a whole group of people would willingly befriend her. Something in her was convinced that they were doing it out of some sort of obligation. Callie tried to get those thoughts out of her mind and just enjoy the company.

The only person she hadn't seen lately was the one person she expected to see the most of. Papyrus. He'd promised to try and make her happy, but she hadn't really seen him around. He didn't call her. And when _she_ tried to do the calling, he never seemed to want to talk for very long. When she asked about hanging out, Papyrus became evasive and gave answers like "I am very busy this week, I apologize!" or "I am very sorry, but I cannot see you today because I need to clean the house!" The kinds of things people generally say when they don't want to see you, but also don't want to hurt your feelings by saying so.

It had been two and a half weeks since that evening Callie spent at his apartment. In a way it wasn't surprising that it went this way, since that happened with a lot of people she tried to be friends with, but it didn't seem like something he'd do. Somehow she'd expected differently from him. Maybe she _did_ share too much too quickly. It probably freaked the poor dude out.

To be honest, it did hurt. He seemed really sweet. If he didn't contact her soon, Callie was going to ask him if something was up. Perhaps if she could get him to be direct with her, they might be able to patch up whatever damage she'd done.

Callie sighed, curling up in her bed. She wondered if the other monsters knew something was going on. Had he said anything? Were they just hanging out with her so that he wouldn't have to? Okay, that was going a little too far. Callie had a bit of a habit of jumping to the worst conclusion like that, assuming she was somehow a problem or burden. But she at least recognized it, and did want to try and get over it.

...But it was kind of difficult to shake a mindset that'd been reinforced by how people treated you for most of your life.

Callie wrapped the blanket around herself. It helped when the depression was really, really setting in. She thought about perhaps just taking a nap...

"knock-knock."

It was a deep, mellow voice was accompanied by an actual knocking sound. Callie sat up. It was probably the last voice she expected to hear.

"Sans?"

"You're supposed to ask who's there."

"...Uh... who's there?"

"Spaghetti."

"... Spaghetti who?"

"Get dressed, we're gonna spaghetti outa here."

Callie was silent. Why was Sans here? Sans, of all people? He had never really talked with her much, never shown any interest in spending time with her like everyone else did. So... why was he here? The girl suspected that the only way to find out was to, well, go with him. It was better than letting the usual numbness overtake her again.

"...Gimme five minutes."

* * *

Having no idea what the occasion was, Callie put on a nice enough blouse and a little black skirt. Something versatile. When she opened the door, Sans looked at her with what seemed to be approving eyes. He even gave her a thumbs up.

"Lookin' good."

"Thanks. So... where are we going?"

"Well, I was asked to escort you."

"Escort me? By who? To where?"

The skeleton shrugged, smiling. "I was bribed not to give away the surprise."

"What on Earth were you bribed with?"

"Can't say. I was bribed not to tell you anything."

Callie realized that her questions were getting her nowhere. "Alright, I give up. Just take me wherever you're taking me."

Sans laughed. "Now that's a spirit I can get behind. Let's go."

He led the way out of the dorm hall and onto the main campus. The two walked towards the main entrance of the college, receiving all kinds of bewildered and frightened looks along the way. Callie wasn't as bothered by their obvious discomfort and fear as much as she was worried. Would someone try and follow them? Would they try and hunt the freaks?

Whatever the case, Sans didn't seem too worried. He just kept walking, making sure Callie was still close behind every now and again. They had left the campus grounds and were headed, it seemed, towards a more empty side of town. The only things over there were an open field and a hiking trail.

... That seemed... odd.

Well, she was just going along for the ride at this point. She'd find out the situation soon enough. In the meantime, Callie thought she'd try and make conversation. She and Sans had never really talked, after all.

"So... uh... how are you liking the surface, Sans?"

He turned his head a bit to respond. "It's great. Now that we're under the actual sun, I can finally get a tan."

Callie chuckled.

"Ya gotta... bronze them bones... right?"

She heard him laugh, if rather quietly. That was a good sign at least.

"Have you, uh... found a job around town yet?" She decided to try and keep it up.

"I actually found a job at the spider bakery. I'm a cashier."

A bell of recognition rang in her head. "Oh I heard about that place! I might have to come check it out."

"Yeah. If you want, you can even check out the web-site for coupons."

"Thanks, I-"

Callie paused, realizing what he just said. Sans laughed a little more audibly this time.

They were approaching the fields, which seemed to be their destination. Callie thought she could hear voices whispering as they got closer. There was a small hill the two had to climb before they could actually see the fields, so she couldn't be sure until they got over it.

"Say, Sans..." Callie began. There was a question she thought she should ask. "How's... uh... how's Papyrus?"

The small skeleton smiled. "You really like my brother, don't you?"

"He seems really nice. I'd like to get to know him more. Does he... I mean... has he talked about me?"

"Oh he's mentioned you once or twice." There was a hint of something playful in his voice.

"Oh..." She said. "Well, I haven't talked to him lately. I had this idea that I'd done something wrong."

He stopped. "Wrong?"

Callie's shoulders slumped as she began to speak.

"Yeah. I kinda... to be honest... I got a little upset when he was walking me home . Not at him or anything, just... upset in general. He brought up a bit of a sensitive topic without meaning to. Did I... freak him out? Scare him away?"

Sans looked rather surprised for a moment, then sighed. He backtracked a few steps and offered out his hand.

"C'mon."

She took it, and the two continued walking.

"Trust me, ya didn't scare him away."

"I... I didn't?"

"Nah."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure."

They reached the top of the hill. Callie's eyes widened. The voices she heard had been coming from the other monsters. Toriel and Alphys were arranging food on a picnic table, Undyne was playing with Frisk, and Asgore seemed to be admiring a bed of nearby flowers.

And, at the head of everything, setting up what looked like a large game of tic-tac-toe, was Papyrus.

As soon as he took notice of her presence, he ran up to her.

"Ah, I see you have arrived, Callie! Was my brother able to keep this a surprise for you?"

"Y- yeah, he was."

He leaned in a bit. "How many puns did he make you suffer through?"

"Aww c'mon bro, she loved my puns!"

Callie turned, feeling her mood lighten by the minute. "They were a bit punishing, I won't lie."

"See Sans, she-"

He paused as soon as he realized what she said. Sans was laughing rather loudly at this.

"Sans, I'm blaming you for this!"

Callie chuckled. "Don't be mad at him, Papyrus. He was a good escort."

"But he is corrupting your mind with horrible puns!"

"I think she's pretty humerus."

Papyrus let out an audible growl of frustration.

"So... so you put this together? For me?" Callie decided to change the subject before he started screaming.

"Yes! I've been planning this for the past two weeks, in fact." It seemed to work.

"So that's why you've been so busy?" She asked. A pang of guilt ran through her as she thought of her assumptions.

"Yes indeed. I've been organizing this whole thing! Deciding what day to do it on, having everyone cook their best dishes, calibrating the puzzles... it's been quite the task!"

The sense of guilt grew stronger.

"... Thank you. You didn't need to do this, really."

Papyrus waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.

"Nonsense! Of course I did. I promised to make you happy again, didn't I?"

"You did."

"And that's what I'm going to do! I'm starting by making sure you know that you have plenty of friends. Way more than two. Everyone here wants to be your friend! I... w-why are you crying?"

Papyrus saw tears streaming down her face. She couldn't help it, it was just... so... _nice_. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed. As weird as it was to hug a skeleton, Callie found it wasn't all that unpleasant.

"... T-thank you. I'm... I'm really sorry..."

"What ever could you have to feel sorry about?"

There was a long pause before Callie answered.

"...I- I thought you were trying to avoid me."

A look of pain crossed his face. Oh, she was really starting to feel terrible.

"No. No Callie, of course not. I would never do that someone dear to me! Especially when... when..." He trailed off, his face losing its spark of joy that it usually had.

She recognized that expression. It was the same one he'd gotten back at the apartment when he'd talked about befriending a human in the Underground. Callie understood that he was keeping something to himself, something that was probably a bit too personal for him to talk about just yet. She wasn't about to pry.

"Well, thank you. This means... this means so much to me." She said.

"You're welcome, Callie. I am so glad that my plan is working! I mean..." He didn't seem too pleased with his wording. "I knew it would work! And to think, this was only phase one! Nyeh-heh-heh!"

Phase one? This was only the first part? What could possibly be a bigger gesture of kindness than this?

"Ah Pap, you don't have to do anything else, this was already more..."

He put a phalange against her lip.

"Nonsense. I promised to do everything I could to make you happy, and that's what I'm going to do. But forget about phase two for the moment. I will reveal my next step at the end of the night! For now, we must join the others and have immense amount of fun!"

Callie smiled and wiped the tears away from her cheeks.

"Alright, Papyrus. Let's go have some fun."

 **A/N: So here's chapter 4! I hope this wasn't too sappy or anything. Thanks so much for reading, thank you for all the reviews, and I really hope everyone enjoyed this! Seeya next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

Everyone greeted Callie with warm smiles as she approached the picnic table. Frisk even ran up to hug her leg. What a sweet little guy he was. She bent down to return the favor.

"Good evening, Callie. We are so glad you're here." Toriel said.

The girl looked up.

"T-Thank you. I mean... for this. I didn't expect..."

She smiled. "Of course, my dear. Papyrus told us how unhappy you were, and we all wanted to remedy that."

Callie stood back up, breaking her hug with Frisk.

"Still, thank you. This means so much to me."

"I'm so happy it does. Now come, join us! There's a seat we've saved just for you."

Throughout most of her life, Callie thought, she'd been the one people kept any open seat from. In her younger years, classmates would even pour milk on an open spot so she couldn't sit with them. Now people would just say it was just taken or they'd outright tell her to fuck off. It was only a slight insult compared to everything else, but it was still nice to get a break from that treatment.

Frisk grabbed her hand and the two walked over to the picnic table. There was, in fact, a seat saved for her, right between two other empty seats. Her name was written in an elegant font upon a little card. Callie smiled at the gesture. As she took her place, Callie felt a hand smack her firmly on the back. It nearly knocked the wind out of her.

"Heya, Cal!"

Undyne plopped down next to her, a wide grin on her face.

"H-hey Undyne."

Oh that was gonna leave a bruise.

"Howya been? What do ya think of this little get-together we planned?"

"It's wonderful! I'm so grateful you guys would do this for me."

Her smile stretched wider.

"Great!"

Undyne glanced over at Papyrus, who had gone back to finish up one of several games he'd set up around the area. He'd developed a taste for board games since since he'd been on the surface, considering them "highly complex, cooperative puzzles with multiple solutions" and was constructing jumbo sized versions of them for everyone to play.

Satisfied that he wasn't within ear-shot, Undyne turned her attention back to Callie.

"Listen..." She began. "Papyrus has something planned for you at the end of the night."

"Yeah, he told me about a... a phase two... of his plan to make me happy."

"Well, he already told me what he was going to do, and I'm here to give you a little advice for when he does."

"...Oh?"

Undyne leaned in.

"Just go with it, okay?" While she said it in a calm tone, there was a hint of something threatening in the way her teeth clenched after saying it.

"I- I will, Undyne. I'm sure I'll love whatever he's going to do."

She chuckled. "Well, good. I hope you do."

Callie didn't know what to make of Undyne's attitude. What could he be planning that she would possibly be unhappy with? And why was she so... well... defensive about it? Though they'd known one another for only a few weeks, surely she knew Callie wouldn't be an asshole about whatever it was Papyrus had in store, no matter what it was. Not only did that go against her personality, it was also the kind of behavior that'd end the friendships she'd just made. It wouldn't make any sense for her to do anything other than "go with it", whatever "it" was.

Before she could think further on this, the skeleton in question sat down on the other side of her.

"The puzzles are complete! We will all solve them together, after dinner of course. Puzzles require energy, and an empty stomach just won't do for that."

Sans, who had sat down opposite of both of them, chimed in. "You might say they wouldn't have the stomach for it."

"Yes Sans, preci-"Papyrus stopped mid-sentence.

The shorter skeleton laughed.

Papyrus sighed, resting his forehead against his palm. "For the love of God, Sans..."

"Yes, bro? You got some food for thought?"

"Just stop."

"Aw, c'mon Pap! It takes a lot of guts to make jokes this punny!"

With a deep breath, Papyrus decided to ignore the joke and continue with his conversation. "Anyways, I am excited for tonight's events. I have so much planned that you won't even remember to feel sad!"

"Thank you so much, Papyrus. You're a very sweet...err... skeleton."

He shot her one of his wide grins. Callie grinned back.

"No bones about it!" Sans commented.

Papyrus stopped grinning.

"I am going to kill him one of these days, I swear."

* * *

Dinner consisted of a wide array of dishes. Hot dogs, sandwiches, pasta, large jugs of home-brewed tea... it was just a feast. Toriel had even made pie for dessert, which was delicious.

After everyone had had their fill, Papyrus began assigning people to different games. He'd made a checkerboard, a tic-tac-toe board, even a scrabble board with tiles. Callie was very impressed by his crafting skills.

She was assigned to checkers, with Sans as her partner. He of course wasn't exactly eager to play, but wasn't really combative about it either. Sans had this way of maintaining a level of indifference towards most everything he did. Judging by his skill level with the game, however, you wouldn't be able to tell. He had already beaten her twice by the time the ten minute mark past.

"God damn, how are you so good at this?"

He shrugged, then moved the foam piece over another square. Damn, he'd boxed her in. No matter which direction she moved, he could jump over her on his next turn. Callie looked over the board in thought.

"Hmm..."

Her only other piece was in a corner, but she could at least move it one more space. She was gonna lose anyways, but it'd buy her time before defeat.

But, really, what was the point of that?

"Fuck it." She said, sliding the doomed piece over to the next square. "I... uh... I know when I'm beat."

Sans gave her an approving smile, then took his jump.

"You still have one more piece on the board,, y'know."

Callie shrugged. "Won't do me any good. You'll still get it if I move two more spaces in any direction."

"Well you can always try, right? Go down fighting?"

"Nah."

She moved it once. He moved closer. She moved again. He jumped it.

"You win again, Sans."

"I guess you could say I've... got game?"

She chuckled.

"I guess so."

Sans smiled, sitting on top of one of the checker pieces. "Say Cal, can I tell ya somethin?"

"Uh... yeah, sure. Shoot."

"Well, I wanna thank you for being so good to my brother. He's uh... happier than I've seen him in a while."

"O-o? Well, I'm so... I'm glad. He's a great guy."

Well that seemed to confirm that there was something he hadn't told her about himself. There was some sadness beneath his bubbly nature. She wasn't to inquire further into it, though. Papyrus could tell her in his own time.

"Yeah, well... it's good to see him like this again. I don't think I could handle seeing him... how he was... again."

Callie sensed there was a message in there. No, not a message. A warning.

"Sans, can I tell _you_ something?"

"Shoot."

"This is the happiest I've been in a long time too. Papyrus... well... I wouldn't be here right now if it weren't for him."

She wasn't about to say exactly what she meant by that, but wanted to make Sans understand that she owed Papyrus big time.

"You don't just mean sitting here on a checkerboard with me, do you?"

O-oh. He uh... he understood a little too well. Callie lowered her head, which seemed to be all Sans needed for an answer.

"Got it."

"Thanks." She said. He was courteous enough to not say it out loud. "So I'm not about to go hurting him."

"Good. I'm glad." The skeleton glanced to his side, and smiled. "Because I think it's about time for phase 2."

"Huh?" Callie asked.

She followed Sans eyes to see Papyrus making his way over towards them.

"Oh! Already? But it's only..." she looked at her phone. "... 9:00?! Jesus, I didn't know we'd been here for so long!"

While she'd noticed the sunset had dissolved into night, Callie hadn't realized how much time had passed after said dissolve. Time hadn't passed that quickly for her since... well... the last time she was with Papyrus.

"Welp..." Sans began, scooting himself off of the checker piece. "This is between you and my bro, so I'm just gonna leave you to it."

"Leave me to what? What exactly is his phase two? Why is everyone so mysterious about it?"

Sans chuckled, but otherwise said nothing. He began to wander towards Toriel and Frisk, who looked as if they were ready to head home. They were out of earshot, but Callie could see the queen smile brightly at something Sans said. Frisk put a hand to his mouth and appeared to giggle.

"Callie!" Papyrus greeted as he drew near.

"Hey Papyrus!"

"Are you having fun?"

"Oh yes. You've put everything together so wonderfully!"

She could see his face light up at the compliment. "Why thank you! I know, I'm quite amazing, but... there was a part of me that was worried you'd be disappointed with everything. Silly of me, right? Of course I wouldn't fail!"

"That's not silly at all, Pap. It's normal to be a little nervous."

"Nyeh! The Great Papyrus does not get..." He stopped mid-thought. "Never mind! So, Callie, now that the festivities are dying down, are you ready for the grand reveal of phase two?"

With the way everyone had been talking about it, Callie wasn't sure if she should be or not. But, at the same time, she wanted to know what all the secrecy was for.

"Go right ahead, Pap. Though honestly, I don't think I could really be happier than I am right now."

"That is precisely it, though. Right now you are happy, but how am I to maintain your happiness after tonight?"

"Just be yourself, Papyrus. You make me happy just being around." Callie assured.

This answer seemed to please him. "That is wonderful, because that is exactly what the next phase of my plan revolves around!"

"Oh? Your next phase is to continue being there for me? That's so sweet of you!"

Huh. That didn't seem like it was worth all of the build-up...

"Oh more than that!"

Huh?

"Callie, there was something you said that night that really stuck with me."

"Oh?"

"Yes, you had talked about people not wanting to talk to you. Not wanting to be your friend. Those two things are what I've tried to remedy in phase one. Phase two is how I am going to remedy your final problem!"

... Where was he going with this? She remembered talking about being lonely and not having friends. Those were her main issues. After that, she'd just started to whine. She couldn't even really remember what exactly she'd said once she started getting carried away.

"Callie, you said that nobody was willing to date you because of how you looked. You said that was the way it was, and it always would be. Or, you started saying that last part and stopped mid-way out of shame for saying it. But I know that was the intended phrase!"

Oh. Ohhhhh...

"So I, The Great Papyrus, am taking it upon myself to break this cycle for you! I will date you! I will be such a good boyfriend that you will not remember ever feeling alone to begin with!"

This... this explained a lot. No wonder everyone was warning her about phase two, about how she reacted. They didn't want Papyrus to get his heart broken when he put himself out there.

"So, Callie, when would you like to have our first date?" He asked.

Date? Papyrus? Callie wasn't sure how that was going to work. He was a... a skeleton, after all. Were they going to kiss? How? H-how far would they be able to go? Would she even want to do anything like that with him? Callie didn't even really have those feelings for him, but maybe that was because she'd never thought about it. She was just so grateful to have a friend that the idea of a boyfriend never crossed her mind. Maybe it was because of what he was. A skeleton boyfriend?

Callie thought for a minute. Was she really going to reject someone for being different? For not being like her? That would make her the worst type of hypocrite. And besides, he was probably doing this because he's thinking of ways to make her happy. That was something she'd mentioned, so it was only natural for him to think he should try and fix that hole in her life himself.

Whatever his reasons, Callie decided that he at least deserved a chance. And hey, it would be nice to actually have a boyfriend, even if it turned out to be just an act of kindness on his part.

"H- having a hard time thinking of somewhere?" Papyrus interrupted her thoughts.

She realized she'd been silent for a long time. Callie could see the nervous expression on his face. She smiled.

"How about lunch tomorrow?"

 **A/N: So now you know Papyrus's ultimate plan to make Callie happy! What do you all think? Anyway, thanks so much for the support and for reading! I hope this was good. Seeya next time ^^**


	6. Chapter 6

"So I'm dating a skeleton."

Callie had just arrived back at her dorm room from the party. Sara was still up, doing some homework on her bed. She slowly looked up from her task, eyes wide and mouth open. Callie stiffened as she awaited her response.

Sara closed her textbook and gently set it upon the nightstand between their beds.

"Not what I was expecting to hear." She began. "But I can guess that means you had a good night?"

Callie took a deep breath and plopped onto her bed.

"I...well... yeah..."

"You don't sound too certain there, Cal."

"I- I had a good time. Papyrus planned this whole party thing for me and it was wonderful. Really wonderful."

Sara smiled. "That's great!"

"It is! He's so fucking nice to me. I just... y'know..." Callie rested her head against the back wall, sighing.

"He won you over."

Callie's brows furrowed. She wasn't exactly sure how to explain the situation.

"...No?"

She sighed. "Well, I mean... he's dating me because he thinks it'll make me happy. Like... it's part of this whole plan to do just that."

"So you think he's just doing it because he feels sorry for you? Like a pity date?"

"... No, not exactly. He's doing it because he thinks it's the best solution to my sadness, but I don't think he fully understands the implications." Callie explained.

Sara nodded. "You don't believe this'll last too long, do you?"

"I don't even know if I want it to last long. I don't know if it _could._ I accepted because, I mean... he's so sweet, and it would be nice to date someone for the first time. But still... I just... I don't know how this is going to work..."

Callie was glad Sara was there. She was a wonderful listener, and these things had been buzzing around in Callie's mind since she'd accepted Papyrus's offer. She was beginning to wonder if this had been the right choice. She felt so overstuffed with questions and doubts about this whole thing, getting a second opinion on it seemed almost vital. Whenever she was questioning herself, Callie always liked having someone to rely on when it came to refuting or confirming her fears.

Sara saw the turmoil in Callie's expression, and moved to sit beside her on her bed. She wrapped an arm around her.

"Hey."

The white-haired girl turned her head to face her.

"It's okay, Cal."

"I... what do you think I should do, Sara?"

"I say give him a chance. Take it one date at a time. See where it goes."

"But... I mean..." Callie sighed.

Sara patted her shoulder. "You have a nasty habit of over-thinking things."

"I know."

"Just date him. Maybe you'll find you like it."

"Maybe..." Callie said. Then something came to mind. "Y'know, I figured you'd be more weirded out by this."

Sara shrugged. "It's weird, I won't lie. But after all of the failed dates I've set you up on, all the rejection you've faced, I'm glad someone kind is taking an interest. Because let's face it; you need this. You've never even really dated before. Even if it doesn't last too long, the experience will be useful."

Callie thought about that. She was a bit socially lacking. Then again, in some ways, so was Papyrus. Maybe they could learn from one another. Callie really didn't expect this to last too long. He'd probably realize dating someone just to make them happy, because they feel obligated to, is a mistake, and break it off rather quickly. Perhaps going in with that expectation was best, so that neither party is hurt in the long-run. She _did_ want to retain their friendship. But for now, she could enjoy the affection.

"Thanks Sara."

"No problem."

"Say, will you help me pick out an outfit? I've got a lunch date tomorrow."

She chuckled. "Of course, Cal. Of course."

* * *

Callie had just left English class and was on her way to her date. She'd been dressed up for the occasion since earlier that day, and was actually feeling kind of... pretty. Her hair was brushed to one side and tied in a low ponytail. The make-up she wore was light, pastel actually, to match her baby blue dress. It whipped around her legs in the breeze, which made her feel a tad whimsical.

She began making her way through town. The restaurant they'd chosen was near Papyrus's apartment complex, so she expected him to be there when she arrived. Originally, as usual, he wanted to escort her, but Callie insisted on them simply meeting up. She had classes and didn't want him to wait for her if he arrived early.

As she got closer and closer to her destination, Callie began to grow nervous. She wasn't entirely sure what to expect from Papyrus. Would he treat her any differently now that they were... uh... together? What would _he_ expect? Callie didn't know if she really wanted to think about that.

Well, whatever the case, she was within sight of the restaurant. It was a tiny Italian place (of course he'd pick Italian), and apparently the food was pretty damn good. There were several little outdoor tables in front of the place, and she could recognize her date standing near one of them. As soon as he caught sight of her, his whole face lit up.

"Callie!" He called, speed-walking towards her.

"Hey, Papyrus!" She replied. "You look... very nice."

The skeleton was dressed rather nicely for the occasion. A pair of black dress shoes, khaki pants, a white button-up shirt, and a red blazer. The whole outfit somehow gave an illusion of form underneath it, as if he had broad shoulders and a narrow waist. Callie had no idea how that was even possible... unless there was some kind of padding in the blazer or something? She wasn't sure. There was quite a lot of mystery around the skeletons. Quite a lot of questions she had. Quite a lot of questions she wasn't sure she wanted the answers to.

"Why thank you! I know now people put on _fancy_ clothes when going on a date." He turned away for a moment, as if he was embarrassed about something. But, as usual, he snapped out of it very quickly.

"And I see you've done the same! You look lovely."

"Why thank you, Papyrus."

She smiled. He was quite the charmer.

He held out a seat for her before walking back to his own spot. As he pulled his chair out, Papyrus grinned. One hand reached down towards the seat and pulled up a bouquet of pink roses.

Callie's eyes widened as he presented them to her.

"T-thank you."

"No need to thank me! Gift-giving is part of a date! What kind of boyfriend would I be if I ignored such an important rule?"

Callie took the roses and placed them on her lap.

"Still... it's very sweet. They're beautiful."

"I made sure to get pink, so they would match your eyes."

In any other circumstance, she might have suspected that gesture and comment to be a hidden stab at her condition. It wouldn't have been the first time someone's feigned nice only to start spewing vicious little comments. But she knew that wasn't his intent. He was just treating the freakish pinks and reds like normal eye colors, to be admired and complimented by matching shades.

"That... that means a lot. Thank you."

He smiled. She wondered if he knew that already, or if it was just another one of his natural moments of saying the right thing.

The waiter arrived at their table. He was a young fellow, perhaps around Callie's age.

"W- What can I get you all to drink today?"

Callie saw how his eyes darted between the two of them, how his knuckles appeared white as they gripped the note-pad. The dude was scared shitless, it seemed.

"I'll just have a coke." Callie said.

Reluctantly, he turned towards his skeleton customer.

"A-and you... sir?"

"I will have iced tea, please!"

The waiter scribbled with a shaking hand and damn near ran away. Callie sighed. She hated to see someone so afraid of someone so harmless and kind. Not only because it was unwarranted, but because she'd experienced it. It hurt to be rejected and feared like that. He didn't seem too affected, but she couldn't be sure if that was really the case.

"So, Callie, tell me something about yourself!"

"Huh, what?"

Callie had been too lost in her own thoughts to hear what he'd said.

"Tell me something about yourself. Much like a friendship, any romantic relationship begins with learning about the other person. Being the more experienced dater here, I figured I should initiate the conversation."

She couldn't help but smile. "Alright... what would you like to know?"

Papyrus thought for a minute. "What is your favorite color?"

Huh. Though she didn't know what question to expect, that one was not it. She didn't really... think about it too often, really. But she wanted to give some kind of answer, so she just said the first thing that popped into her head.

"Red."

"I will have to remember that, then. Mine is blue!"

"Nice. So... I guess I ask you a question now?"

Papyrus nodded. "Ask me anything you'd like!"

So, what to do here? She didn't really know what could or couldn't ask. She wasn't even sure what she really wanted to ask. Callie tried, for now at least, to keep it light and sweet.

"When is your birthday? So I know when to start shopping for a gift."

As it often seemed to, his face lit up.

"Wowie! Nobody's ever... uh..." He paused. "... It's the 25th of March. I'll be 19."

"Oh, you're the same age as I am!" Callie said. She decided to ignore the first part of his statement. If he didn't want to discuss it, she wasn't going to push it.

"You're 18 too? We already have so much in common already!"

"I suppose we do."

The waiter brought their drinks.

"W-what will you have this afternoon?"

Callie looked up at him. He looked as terrified as he did before.

"I think we'll have two orders of spaghetti." Callie turned back to Papyrus, smiling brightly. "That alright with you, Pap?"

"It's more than alright! You've made a wonderful choice. And subsequently, so have I."

Callie put a hand over mouth to cover her grin. She'd never been... well... treated like this before. It was all so nice and actually, genuinely charming. While his actions were typical of someone wooing a new love, and perhaps even a little cheesy, his personality just sold the whole thing.

It was at this point that the waiter realized they were on a date. His eyes widened and bounced between the two as his jaw slackened. Why it had taken him so long to realize this? Callie could only guess. Maybe he was too freaked out by the talking skeleton to question what it was doing with a human companion.

But, luckily, his judgement got the better of him and no comment was made. For now. He took the order and went on his way. Callie didn't want to think about what the boy might be saying to his co-workers, and turned back to Papyrus.

"So whose turn is it to ask a question?"

* * *

Papyrus insisted on walking Callie home, since she wouldn't let him walk her to the restaurant. Said restaurant, did, evidently, have some damn good food. The waiter never said anything about their relationship, but it was obvious that he was at least a little repulsed.

"So Callie, did I make this a wonderful first date for you?"

"Absolutely, Papyrus. Thanks for taking me out."

"Of course! I had promised to, hadn't I? The only question is how to top this date! I must make sure the next one will exceed your standards!"

"Ah Pap, you don't have to top anything. Anything you plan is great."

"But I must make each date better than the last! I must make sure this relationship escalates properly, right? I promised to be the best boyfriend I could be."

What did he mean by that? Escalate properly? She wasn't sure she wanted to know yet. Callie didn't want to ruin a good day. "You seem to be doing just fine. I'm... I feel happy."

"You do?" He asked, stopping. "Then my plan is working."

"Yep."

She wasn't lying. She was happy. Even if it was just for now. Even if she had a feeling it wouldn't last. For now she could just enjoy the affection. Take it one date at a time. They could deal with the problems later.

 **A/N: I hope this came out good! Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. I'm really enjoying writing this.**


	7. Chapter 7

It was her fourth date with Papyrus. They were getting ready for a day at the beach, which was only a few miles out of town. Callie was, to be honest, a little nervous about the prospect. She was going to be showing quite a bit of skin, something she wasn't used to. This wasn't just because of how the sun affected her pale skin. People looked at her with concern and disgust in general, so exposing herself more would only make that worse. And uh... well... she didn't really know what to expect from this situation.

While people were slowly becoming more accustomed to the presence of monsters in society, progress was still at a snails pace. There had been a few incidents of violence against monsters, even against their human companions, and it worried her. The two of them being at the beach, exposed and surrounded by other humans... she couldn't be sure they'd be safe.

As a precaution, both for Callie and Papyrus's sake, they would go on a cloudy day. Less people would be there and it wouldn't be as hard on her skin.

Though, to be honest, those weren't her only concerns.

"Callie! Are you ready to go?" Papyrus called, waiting by the taxi.

"Coming Pap!" She said, grabbing her old beach bag.

The two sat together in the back seat.

"Where are we headed?" The driver asked.

"The nearest beach." Callie replied.

Through driver's rear-view mirror, Callie could see him glance between her and Papyrus. His eyes got big for a moment, then refocused on the road ahead. He was trying not to react, like a lot of people in the service industry did when they came around.

"... Can do."

Callie sighed. She was somewhat used to it, but that didn't mean she very much enjoyed it. Having everyone look at you like a freak when you were just trying to have a good time really grated on the nerves.

Her eyes began to drift towards the window, watching the trees pass by in a blur of greens and browns. After a while, however, she felt something touch her. Callie snapped up to see Papyrus with his hand over hers. She smiled, wrapping her fingers around his.

Despite the annoyances and worries, she didn't regret accepting his date offer. He'd been great to Callie, always making her feel warm and welcome in his life. It was an amazing feeling, a lovely change of pace. He didn't seem to be showing any signs of regret yet, but Callie was sort of waiting for it. Soon enough he'd see the problems they were going to face. Hell... today might be that day.

She glanced back at the driver. He caught sight of their intertwined hands and his mouth scrunched up in disgust. Callie looked down at her feet.

Finally they arrived. Callie paid the driver and got out as fast as she could manage. Papyrus, on the other hand, smiled at the driver.

"Thank you, kind human, for transporting us here!"

He seemed puzzled. "Uh... thanks... dude."

"No problem! Have a lovely day."

And with that, he drove off.

Papyrus walked over to Callie, towel under his arm and a smile on his face.

"Oh boy, I'm so excited! This is my first beach."

"I'm glad, Pap. I hope you enjoy yourself."

"And you can enjoy myself with me, only as you!"

Callie giggled. "Exactly."

Grabbing her hand again, Papyrus led her to where the sand began. Callie looked around. There were a few people scattered here and there, but the two of them were mostly alone. This comforted Callie. For a moment.

"So what does one do at a beach?" Papyrus asked.

"Oh... well... it depends. Some just come to sunbathe..."

Papyrus looked up. "I assume we won't be doing that!"

"Nope. But we can do other things. We can play Volleyball, have a picnic, swim... if you, y'know... c-can."

"Why of course I can swim! One can't be in the Royal Guard without being a strong swimmer. Of course, I'm not in the Royal Guard... a-anymore... but my swimming skills are still in tip-top condition!"

"Say Papyrus, you keep mentioning the Royal Guard. What was it exactly?" This was a question she'd had on her mind for a while now, but she wasn't sure when the proper time to ask would be. She wanted to wait till the topic came up again.

"Oh the Royal Guard was created by king Asgore. They served as our first defense against humans!"

"O-oh, that's interesting." She remembered that it was, in all honesty, her species that put the monsters underground to begin with. Of course they'd create something to protect themselves.

"So what was your duty?"

"I was a sentry. My duty was to watch for humans and capture one if I saw them. Then Undyne would... well... " He stopped. It seemed there was something he didn't quite want to say.

"... And what would you do after you captured them?"

"Bring them to the Capital! And then... well..." He trailed off, seeing the worried expression on her face. "... No matter! I'm done with trying to capture a human. Of course. There's no need! We're here, on the surface."

"That's good."

Callie tried to shake off the feeling of her stomach sinking into her gut. She knew he would never hurt her, but the idea that his job used to require... capturing... one of her species, was an unnerving one. And even though he didn't say it, Callie had a pretty good idea of what the monsters did with their captured humans.

Papyrus could see she was still worried, and tried to change the subject.

"So swimming! Do you want to go swimming with me?"

"S-sure."

Though that, of course, was a whole new can of anxiety. Callie had brought a pink one-piece, the only one she had, and was wearing it under her outfit. Even though it wasn't crowded, people would still see more of her than she was comfortable with. She wasn't sure what she thought of Papyrus seeing that much of her, either.

"So... do you have your swimwear?" Callie asked.

Papyrus had worn a simple T-shirt and a pair of knee-length shorts. Beach appropriate, but she wasn't sure if it was swimming appropriate.

He looked down at himself.

"Well these aren't technically swim trunks, but no matter! The Great Papyrus can improvise!"

He proceeded to take off his t-shirt.

"Nyeh! I can simply use my regular shorts as swim shorts!"

Oh. Oh okay. She uh... she was not prepared for that. It was an odd thing, to see Papyrus without a shirt. Callie wasn't even sure how to feel about it. She had gotten used to seeing bones where his arm muscles should be, eye sockets where eyes should be, but somehow this was still a shock. Maybe that's just because she hadn't seen this until now.

Callie gave him a thumbs up, trying to hide her mixture of emotions.

"Cool, Pap. Let me just, uh..."

Her hands grasped the hem of her shirt. She took a deep breath. Off it went.

... This isn't so bad, she thought. It's like wearing a tank top.

Another deep breath. She slowly shimmied out of her bottoms.

There. Everything was fine. Nobody was staring at her. Papyrus was waiting with an excited smile.

"Ready?" He asked.

"... Ready."

With that, the two took to the water. Papyrus grabbed her hand as they stepped in. The water was up to their ankles.

Knees.

Waists.

Chests. Soon enough they both began to lose touch with the bottom. Though for Callie it came a little sooner, since she was quite a bit shorter than Papyrus. Once they were both floating, they stopped.

"The water sure is warm!" Callie commented, fearing awkward silence.

"It sure is! We picked a perfect day for water related activities!"

Callie saw this as an opportunity to learn more about how skeletons worked. She had been hesitant to ask, but figured she should probably start learning.

"So you... you feel the water?"

"Oh yes, of course! Why wouldn't I?"

Callie bit her lip. Shit. She didn't know how to explain that. Would it offend Papyrus if she said that his physiology was a mystery to her? Would he think her stupid? Well, knowing him, probably not, but Callie was still afraid to upset him.

Well, she'd already brought it up. There was really no taking it back.

"To be honest, Pap...I uh... I don't really know how you... how you... work. Physically."

There was, as she feared, a rather awkward silence. The two bobbed with the waves, Callie avoiding eye contact and Papyrus cocking his head to the side.

Oh she messed up. She messed up big time.

"Callie..." He said.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. That was rude. I shouldn't have asked. I'm really... oh God."

"Callie, don't be sorry!"

He placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up.

"You're just as curious about monsters as I am about humans! This is great! It opens so many doors for conversation."

Callie blinked, a bit surprised.

"O-oh?"

"Yes, we can learn so much from one another! You said so yourself the first time we hung out. People can be wonderful source of information. And who better to inform you than I, The Great Papyrus!"

Callie breathed out a sigh of relief. He was taking this much better than she expected. Then again, this seemed to be the pattern with him. Every time she expected the worst, Papyrus immediately dashed her expectations. How long that would last, who knew.

"Alright, that's great. I'm glad. So you don't mind answering my questions?"

He shook his head. "Not in the slightest. What would you like to know about me?"

"Uh..."

Callie wasn't sure what her first question should be. There were a lot things she was still uncomfortable about asking, and things she knew were going to be too personal. Hell, there were some things she wasn't even sure she wanted to know. So where would be an acceptable place to start?

"Do... do you..." She stopped. Callie worried any wrong wording would turn this date sour.

"Don't be shy!" Papyrus encouraged.

She wanted to know about his senses. Did he actually see her? How? Could he taste things? Could he smell? Did he have a sense of touch? But she couldn't get the words out. She'd often been asked inappropriate, hurtful questions about her condition and didn't want to run him off by doing that.

Papyrus noticed her expression, her lip-biting and darting eyes.

"I promise you can ask anything you wish."

Her gave her a patient smile and swam closer.

"A-are you... can you..."

But before any question could come out, a particularly large wave took them by surprise and swept the two up. Callie went under completely, water stinging her eyes and shooting up her nose. She felt her whole body tumble ass over tea kettle. She tried to grasp onto something, anything, that just wasn't there. Just as she was beginning to panic, Callie found herself being grabbed by the waist and pulled.

Soon enough, Callie was ashore, spitting up sea water. The only thing keeping her from collapsing onto the sand was Papyrus supporting her weight.

"Fear not, Callie! You are safe in the arms of The Great Papyrus!"

After getting all the water up, Callie began to breathe in wild gasps. Papyrus helped move her to where their towels were laid out and gently set her down.

"... Thank... you..." Callie said between intakes of sweet, sweet oxygen.

"No need to thank me!" Papyrus said, sitting down next to her. "What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let the ocean harm you?"

"Still... thanks..."

She lay there for a bit, just letting her body recover from the sudden adrenaline and her lungs settle back into a normal breathing pattern. Papyrus was silent and vigilant by her side, waiting until she was ready to say something.

"Are YOU alright?" She asked.

"Your concern for me is touching, but I am unharmed. Unlike you, I don't have to worry about drowning!"

Callie gave a simple thumbs up. After a couple more minutes, she sat back up and looked at her surroundings. The sky was getting darker... and it seemed people were leaving.

"Pap, I think it's gonna rain soon. We better call our cab and head home."

"Yes, the water on the ground is already trying to kill you. I don't want to stick around to see what the water from the sky tries to do!"

Papyrus stood up and began to collect their things.

Callie laughed. "Yeah, how are you going to save me from the rain?"

As he picked up his T-shirt, Papyrus turned to her.

"I will be forced to fight it."

* * *

The cab ride home was quiet, aside from the soft drizzling of the rain. Callie had fallen asleep, unbeknownst to her, holding Papyrus's hand.

When the cab stopped in front of the campus, where they'd originally left from, the skeleton nudged her back to consciousness.

"We're back?"

He nodded.

Callie paid the driver, who seemed happy to be done with the odd couple, and exited the cab with her companion.

"I apologize this date didn't go as well the last ones." Papyrus said, rubbing the back of his skull. "But I promise to do better next time! I know I can if I just put more effort into it."

Callie was really touched by how hard he was trying to please her. How much it meant to him to see her happy and content. She was afraid of getting too used to this kind of attentiveness, but was grateful for it. In all honesty, she was surprised it had lasted this long.

Maybe that meant the end was close at hand. In a way, she hoped not. Callie was really enjoying... she was really enjoying herself with Papyrus. They had a good time together.

"Papyrus you're doing great. You don't have to try any harder than you already are. You're an excellent... an excellent boyfriend."

He smiled at that, but it faltered for a moment.

"Are you sure? I nearly let you come to harm today..."

Callie couldn't help but feel surprised. He'd never asked for her assurance before. Callie had a sense that maybe he had a fear of failure, or what he perceived as failure. How to reassure him?

She walked up to Papyrus and took his hand in hers again.

"I'm sure."

With a quick sigh, knowing this might be a mistake on her part, Callie stretched up and kissed the bones of his forehead. It was strange to do so... in a way it felt a little wrong, despite how innocent the gesture was. This was the first bit of affection that went beyond a simple hug or the holding of hands.

Callie broke away. She could see a few students glaring at her from under their umbrellas.

Papyrus was rather speechless for a minute.

"Wowie!" He finally said. "My first kiss! And it only took 18 years to get it!"

His first...

"Well, we better get you home! The weather isn't getting much better and I don't anything more happening to you."

And with that, he began leading Callie back to her dorm. She was silent. Callie could hardly believe what she'd just heard. Nobody had ever kissed him before? Not even once? Why would no monster want to kiss him? He was so sweet and optimistic! It didn't make a lot of sense to her.

The monster in question dropped her off at her dorm. Callie grabbed him an umbrella for the walk home.

"You can borrow it until our next date."

"Excellent! Thank you Callie!"

"You're welcome."

She kissed him on the forehead again.

"I'll see you soon."

Papyrus smiled brightly and walked with a light skip towards the door.

How could she possibly be the first to kiss him?

 **A/N: I hoped you all enjoyed this chapter! Than** k you so much for reading and supporting. Anyway, see you guys next chapter!


	8. Chapter 8

Callie felt as if she was getting more weird looks than usual. And considering her past experiences, that was saying something.

Around here, normally, it was simply a passing glance of disgust or discomfort. A comment here, a snicker there. And eventually that died down and settled into simple ignoring and excluding. And while it had hurt, almost driven her over the edge, she was used to it. And at this point it didn't bother her as much, simply because she now had a group of friends to call her own.

Which, unfortunately, didn't settle well with everyone else. And while Callie had expected it wouldn't, she wasn't quite prepared for this.

The girl sat in the campus diner, sipping on a bowl of soup.

"Hey." A familiar voice greeted.

Callie looked up. The person that spoke was familiar, too, but she couldn't quite pin down where she'd seen him.

"Hello." She replied.

He sat down across from her. Callie felt her shoulders tense up. Though she didn't know what his exact intentions were, Callie felt the automatic reaction of distrust creep up her spine.

He seemed to see something in her expression and chuckled.

"You don't remember me, do you?"

"... Kinda... I know I've seen you..."

"The waiter?" He said.

"Oh!"

The waiter from the little Italian place. He went to school here? It made sense, a college student working part time at a restaurant, but she didn't remember seeing him here. Then again she didn't really know many of the students. They didn't want to know her.

"Yeah I remember you now. You uh... you were pretty freaked out by my date."

He leaned in.

"That's actually what I'm here to talk to you about."

Callie began to grip her spoon tighter.

"Oh?"

"I'd like to ask you out."

Callie felt her jaw slacken. What the fuck? What the _fuck?_ Where did that come from? How was she even supposed to respond to that?

"Uhhhh..."

"I know, I know, it's a little out of nowhere."

Oh there's no "a little" about that.

"It's just... I mean... I want you to know you have options. You don't have to resort to dating a monster."

"... Excuse me?"

He looked a little flustered, like he knew he said the wrong thing. "I- I mean I... you're dating... that... because people don't show interest in you, right?"

Callie didn't even want to say anything to that.

"I'm just making sure you don't feel like your... condition... is holding you back from something better than that."

He reached out to place his hand over hers. She pulled away. Callie was feeling quite an uncomfortable mixture of emotions and being touched by the cause of that wasn't really appealing.

"I... I'm leaving now."

He looked confused, even a little hurt.

"I'm just trying to be nice."

Callie shook her head. "You didn't do too well."

"I guess my pitch wasn't that well put together." He rubbed the back of his neck.

Callie stood up to leave. "Not really."

"The offer still stands..."

"I'm good. Thanks."

It was best not to make a scene here, lest she attract more attention from nearby tables. She turned around.

"Maybe next time."

"No." She replied. "I... I'm not interested."

"... My name is Caleb, by the way... I guess I should have said that earlier."

"Well, uh... goodbye, Caleb. Have a nice day."

Callie began to speed walk towards the exit.

"So you actually want to date that thing?" He called.

She stopped. Even without turning, she could feel the eyes of everyone in the diner on her.

"I _am_ dating that thing." Callie called over her shoulder.

She exited the diner.

* * *

"I should have defended him more." Callie said, pacing around the dorm. "I should have stood up for him."

She had just finished explaining the events of that afternoon to Sara. Looking back, Callie was feeling particularly pissed off with herself about how she acted. Not once did she tell the guy to fuck off. Not once did she correct his terminology, tell him that Papyrus wasn't a thing. She should have told the dude off instead of slinking away with her head down.

Sara stood up and placed her hands on Callie's shoulders. "Cal?"

The girl stopped moving.

"Cal, you did the right thing."

"How? I didn't even-"

"Ey, stop it. You handled that situation beautifully. It takes a lot of will power to be polite to someone who's being such a douche."

"It wasn't even will power, I was just... so surprised. Shocked, really."

"Well you handled it well for being in that state. You did the mature thing by being civil and walking away. Trust me, you don't wanna stir up an argument about monsters anyway. It's a hot button issue and with how people treat you already..."

Callie sighed. "I suppose you're right. But I could've at least..."

Sara put a finger to Callie's lips in a "shush" gesture.

"No buts. You did what you should have."

Callie nodded.

There was a short silence. Though she was starting to realize that maybe Sara was right about how she dealt with the situation, something was still plaguing Callie's mind.

"You wanna know something fucked up?"

"I know a lot of fucked up things, but I'm in college to learn, right? Shoot."

She took a seat on Sara's bed.

"In a way, he was right. It was like he had some of the truth, just twisted up in prejudice and his sense of superiority over monsters. I'm dating Papyrus because he was the first one that asked me. Because no human guy had asked me. That's what made the whole situation really just... terrible. I felt like I couldn't refute what he was saying."

Sara sighed and took a spot next to her friend.

"But you wanna know the worst part? The very worst?"

"What?"

"... In his own fucked up way, he was genuinely trying to be nice to me. He was saying these awful things, but he thought he was doing me a favor. It was a whole new kind of insult. I wasn't sure how to react."

Sara gave Callie a pat on the back.

"I know the feeling. It's almost like you feel guilty for being mad, because they're just trying to help in the only way they think they can. But that doesn't make it right."

"You sound like you've had experience." Callie replied.

Sara nodded. "Yeah. It's a shitty feeling. Gotta watch out for that kind of behavior. After a while you start to feel like you're in the wrong."

Callie looked at her friend. Her eyes were downcast, smile dissipating. While they'd known one another for a few months, there were still a lot of things Callie didn't know about Sara. She didn't really like to talk about her past, and Callie respected that. Sara just always liked helping others and making them feel better. Maybe that statement had something to do with her attitude.

She gave Sara a hug. Since she knew there was really nothing she could do about her past, this seemed like the best thing to do.

She returned the hug. "Thanks Cal. But anyways, yeah, what he did was wrong. So let's talk about the other thing you said."

"About dating Papyrus out of desperation?"

Sara nodded. "I don't think you're dating him out of desperation."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you wouldn't come home as happy as you do after spending time with him. You wouldn't be as eager to go out with him."

"Couldn't that just be a product of giddiness? This being my first relationship and all..."

Sara shook her head. "I don't think so. Sure you're giddy, but you also seem to really care about him. You have nothing but good words for the guy. And you know something else?"

"What?"

Sara leaned in. "You're afraid of losing him. You always say that you know it won't last too long, how you should just enjoy the affection, but I can see the disappointment in your eyes when you say it."

"I mean... I do like the guy... he's really sweet. And he's done a lot for me." More than you know, she thought. "But I just know he'll realize it can't work. I'm waiting for it. I'm just scared to lose him as a friend."

Sara rolled her eyes.

"What? You don't believe me?"

"Oh I believe you. I believe you believe he's going to break up with you. And I also believe that you don't want that to happen."

"Well there's no use in ending something prematurely." Callie replied.

Sara raised an eyebrow.

Callie chuckled. "You keep acting like I'm proving your point."

"Because you are."Sara said. "Cal, do you want my honest opinion?"

"... I'm not sure. But I'm gonna hear it anyway soon enough, so lay it on me."

Sara smiled. "I don't think you're dating him out of desperation at all. I think it's quite the opposite."

"How so?"

Sara placed a hand over Callie's. "I think... you're falling for him."

Callie's eyebrows shot up.

"What?"

"You're falling for him. You might be trying to protect yourself by saying it won't last long, don't get too used to this, but deep down you're starting to feel something more than just happiness."

Callie just looked at her for the longest time, eyes wide and jaw slackened.

"I... I..."

There was a soft buzzing sound. Callie reached into her purse and pulled out her cell. There was a text from Toriel on it.

"Uh... I gotta go. Toriel wants me to babysit Frisk for the evening. She's going out with a few friends."

"Saved by goat mom, huh?"

"Well... I mean... I... I don't think you're right, if you worried about me not answering to what you said. I think I just really appreciate the time we spend together."

Callie stood up and headed to the door.

Sara shook her head. "Alright. I won't argue with ya. But when you come back one of these days all starry-eyed and wobbly, expect an I told you so."

She gave Sara a small smile before exiting.

"Fair enough."

 **A.N.: Here's chapter 8! This chapter was really fun to write. I hoped it was a good read, too. Sorry if it's a tad dialogue heavy, but hopefully the conversation was interesting enough. Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. Let me know what you all thought of this chapter and what Sara had to say. ^^**


	9. Chapter 9

Frisk greeted Callie at the door with a hug.

"Hey little guy, how are ya?"

He gave her a thumbs up.

Toriel chuckled. She had just finished getting ready as Callie arrived. She had donned amethyst jewelry to match her usual color scheme and wore a long velvet dress. She couldn't be sure, but the girl had a sneaking suspicion she was going on a date.

"You look really nice, Toriel. There a special occasion?"

She looked down at herself. "Oh, this? I know, it is a bit much. But my friends insisted that I get out of the house more, and take time for myself. And... they certainly have reason to ask that of me. I am a bit of a home-body."

Toriel looked away for a moment, frowning. Callie had been seeing expressions like that a lot lately. Seemed many people had something they didn't want to talk about. And, as usual, Callie wasn't going to try and force it out. But she had an idea that Toriel might have been a little more than a "home-body" back in the Underground.

"So... uh... who are you hanging out with?" Callie wanted to keep the conversation pleasant.

Her face brightened up. "Sans and Dr. Alphys asked me to go out with them. Sans and I were friends in the Underground, and Alphys has her own fears that she wishes to overcome. So she wanted to join."

Callie smiled. "That sounds nice. I hope you guys have a good time. Tell me all about it when you get back."

She nodded. "Don't worry Callie, I shall. Anyway, Frisk should be very easy to take care of. He's very sweet and none too picky about food."

"Does he have any allergies?"

"None."

"Uh... is there anything else I should know? To be honest, I've never babysat before..."

Most kids are afraid of me, she thought.

Toriel shook her head. "He's s very good child. He won't trouble you at all. I just don't want to leave him alone for too long. I... worry."

She leaned in close. "And I want to be sure he'll be in safe hands should something happen."

Callie nodded, understanding. If someone tried to break in, if someone who had it out for monsters found out where the queen lived, she wanted to be sure her child wouldn't come to harm. Callie would be there to protect him and get him out of there.

She looked down at the kid in question and tousled his hair. Callie wasn't too brave, but she wasn't about to let anyone hurt the sweet little boy beside her.

"I promise he's safe with me."

Toriel smiled again. "I know he is."

The sound of a car horn broke them from their conversation.

"That's my ride. I must leave now."

She leaned down to give Frisk a hug. "Be safe, my child."

Toriel stood up and made her way down towards the street, where a red car was waiting. Sans appeared to be behind the wheel, and waved when he saw Callie by the door. She waved back. Toriel climbed into the back seat and the trio drove away.

Callie turned back to Frisk.

"So... whatcha wanna do?"

Frisk shrugged.

"Well, let's go inside and figure it out."

* * *

An hour and one pizza later, Callie and Frisk had built themselves quite an extensive blanket fort. It spanned most of the living room, being held up by the couch and several random chairs. The two sat in the middle of it together, eating and watching a movie. Appropriately enough, Frisk had chosen Alice in Wonderland.

"Is uh... this what being in the Underground was like?" Callie asked. She had a feeling that maybe that was why he'd chosen it.

"... A bit." He said. "I got there the same way. But everything else was different. The Queen adopted me instead of trying to kill me, for one."

Callie's eyes widened. She wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that.

"That's... that's good. I'm glad she took you in."

He nodded. "She's a good mom. Overprotective but good."

There was a question on Callie's mind. Something she hadn't really thought about, but now that the subject was on the table, it seemed like something to ask. She'd been scared to ask questions for too long. Might as well start now. She just had to force herself...

"Frisk?"

Maybe this wasn't a good idea. What if this was too personal? It might bring up painful memories.

"Yeah?"

Callie took a deep breath. She couldn't even bring herself to ask questions when told explicitly that she could. It was high time she got over this fear.

"... Where were you... before?"

She hoped that was a gentle way of asking.

"You want to know if I had a family before?"

Okay, wow, the kid was really perceptive. He knew exactly what she meant.

"Y-yeah."

Frisk gave a small smile. "It's okay to ask. But no, I didn't. I never knew my parents. I was an orphan."

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm happy now. It's okay. I have a family to love me." He took a deep breath. "And nothing will change that."

Callie looked at him. There was something in his expression that told her change was a bit of a pattern is his life. Perhaps he was a foster child?

"Hey." She said.

Frisk turned to her.

"I-I can tell you're a little scared. Like all this happiness will come to an end. But... it won't. Your past is over. You have so many people who love you. They'll never abandon you. Your future is filled with love."

He sighed. "That's what I was scared of."

Callie picked him up in a hug. Poor little guy. She understood, in a way, what he was going through. She was just as afraid of her happiness coming to an end. That maybe everyone would start to ignore her, or hate her, just like most other people did.

Frisk returned the hug. The two stayed that way for a little while, cuddling and watching the movie. When it ended, and the credits began, Frisk spoke again.

"But I know things will be good now. I'm determined to keep them good. I'm not scared anymore."

"That's the spirit, Frisk. I'm glad to hear that. Now, what movie do ya wanna watch next?"

"Hmm..." He pursed his bottom lip in thought. After a few minutes, this changed into a wide grin. "Maybe Beauty and the Beast?"

Callie put her hands on her hips. "Really? Whatever made you decide on that one?"

He shrugged, but the grin remained. "Just popped into my head."

"Uh-huh, sure." Callie replied, rolling her eyes.

Frisk tried to cover his mouth as he giggled. The girl narrowed her gaze, feigning disapproval.

"It seemed fitting! With you dating Papyrus and all..." He defended, still smiling.

"Well Papyrus certainly isn't a beast. If the prince in the story was replaced with Papyrus, that witch would not only be taken out of the cold, but fed spaghetti and given a big hug. The movie would've ended before it began."

This made Frisk's grin spread even wider. He looked up at Callie and snuggled into her lap.

"Do you think you'll fall in love with him?"

"Uhhh..." That caught her off guard. "I mean it's too early to tell. We've only been dating for a few weeks."

She legitimately wasn't sure what to say to him and hoped that answer sufficed. There wasn't really any other way _to_ answer. A kid his age didn't need to know about all the fears she had or all of the foreseeable roadblocks their relationship would face.

"Do you at least really like him?"

Seemed he wasn't done with the topic. Well, at least this one was a bit easier to answer.

"Of course I do. He's a wonderful guy."

"He's a good boyfriend, huh?"

"He's the best."

"Good."

Callie tilted her head a little. "Why do you ask?"

Frisk was quiet at first. He looked away.

"... Frisk?"

"...Well... let's just say you're not the only one who's insecure."

"Oh. Ohhhh. Really?"

He nodded. "He doesn't wanna say it, but he's really nervous about what you think of him."

"Oh... oh..."

That really broke her heart. Papyrus was such a great guy, and he treated her so well.

"Well he's a fantastic, fantastic boyfriend. And I'm very lucky to have him."

I'll have to find a way to make sure he believes that, she thought. He'd done everything possible to make her feel welcomed and happy, it was only fair that she return the favor.

"I'll make sure he knows." Frisk said, interrupting her thoughts.

Callie looked back down at him. "Did he ask you to bring this up?"

"... No..."

She leaned in closer.

"... Not exactly..."

She narrowed her eyes.

"... I might've been bribed."

"With what?"

"... Hot dogs..."

Hot dogs? But... oh.

"It wasn't Papyrus that asked you to bring this up, was it?"

He shook his head.

"Well you tell him that I'm very happy to be dating his brother."

Frisk sat up. "He'll be happy to hear that."

"Also tell him that he doesn't need to use you to ask me questions like that. He can talk to me himself."

Frisk laughed. "He didn't wanna scare you or make you feel like you had to respond a certain way. He thought you might be more comfortable with me."

"Because you're a sweet little kid?" Callie responded, ruffling his hair.

He smiled, nodding. "I'm not as scary."

Callie snorted. "You're not scary at all. There's not a scary bone in your body."

Frisk's expression changed for a moment. Just a moment, but it was enough for Callie to take notice. His eyes drifted towards the side and his smile disappeared. There was something akin to shame in his features. But before she could ask about it, Frisk shook himself out of whatever he was thinking about and smiled again.

"Anyway, he thought you'd feel more free to he honest with me. And he also trusts what I'll say about you."

"Oh so you're like his little spy? Gonna observe the enemy and report to the chief?"

Frisk nodded his head, chuckling. "Except we know you're not an enemy. Sans is just overprotective. Kinda like my mom. He worries."

"Are you worried?"

"About you and Papy?"

"Yeah."

Frisk didn't even hesitate in his response. "Nah. You're good."

"You really think so?"

"I think there's good in everyone. But you've got a lot of it."

Callie smiled. "Thanks kiddo."

* * *

It was late into the evening when they heard the door open. Callie and Frisk were still under their blanket fort, drawing and reading respectively. When she first heard the sound, Callie tensed up. Despite the fun, she was still on high alert for intruders. Should any noise come off as suspicious, the girl was prepared to high-tail it out of the house, Frisk in her arms.

But once she heard the sounds of Toriel and Sans laughing, it eased her. Callie was the first crawl out from under the fort and greet the two.

"Hey guys. Have a nice night?"

Toriel nodded. "It was wonderful. The three of us went out to dinner, then a movie..."

"After that Dr. Alphys had to go home. Undyne was about to burn down the house again." Sans chimed in.

She wasn't sure what concerned her more. The actual near-burning down, or the "again" part.

"It was still early, so the two of us headed to the library. They had a lovely little coffee shop as well!"

"Well I'm glad you guys had a good time."

"Quite! So, how was your night with Frisk?" The queen asked.

Callie directed them towards the fort. This made both monsters smile.

"Is he still under there?" Sans asked.

"Yep. Your little informant has been drawing for the past half-hour."

The skeleton chuckled. "He told you, huh?"

"Yep."

Sans walked over to the fort and crouched down.

"You traitor."

There was giggling coming from behind the wall of blanket. Sans pulled it up to find the little boy smirking at him.

"You can forget about any more hot dogs from me, you realize that kiddo?"

Frisk shrugged.

Toriel looked to Callie, confused.

"Sans used Frisk to ask me how I felt about Papyrus."

The woman crossed her arms. "Sans!"

"Sorry Tori. I guess you have a bone to pick with me now?"

She sighed. "No. But I don't want to hear anymore about you using my child to spy on this nice human girl. Promise?"

"C'mon Tori you know I hate making promises."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Okay, I promise. Can I make it up to you?"

Toriel smiled. "You can start by taking me to the library again next week."

"Consider it done." He replied.

"And you can start making it up to Callie by giving her a ride home. It's late and I don't want her walking home all alone."

Sans looked over to the human girl.

"Whatcha say, Cal? You wanna ride?"

She thought. Toriel was right, it was late. And it would most likely be a lot safer if she was in a car with someone instead of alone and on foot. Not to mention it'd give her a chance to talk with Sans face-to-face.

"Sure. A ride sounds nice. Thank you."

Callie turned to say goodbye to Frisk. She opened up her arms, which Frisk gladly ran into. After a warm hug, she said her goodbye to Toriel.

"Thank you so much for taking care of Frisk. You've done a wonderful job."

"Of course." She looked back down at him. "He's a great kid. Just like you said."

"Well you're welcome here any time. I might have to make you a regular sitter, if you wouldn't mind."

Callie grinned. She did that good of a job? "I'd love to. Thanks."

Sans jumped in. "Well, I think it's time for us to go."

"Okay Sans. Let's go."

And with a final wave, the two headed out to the car. Callie could tell this was going to be an interesting ride home.

 **A.N.: I hope this came out well. I tried to get a good grasp of Frisk's character, but I'm not sure if I succeeded. Anyway, let me know what you all think. Thank you so much for all the support!**


	10. Chapter 10

It was surprisingly quiet for the first few minutes. Callie just sat there, reclined in the passengers seat as Sans drove towards the campus. The only sound was that of the A.C. cooling the both of them down. Well, her anyway. She didn't know what it did for Sans. Part of her, honestly, wanted to go to sleep. Hanging out with Frisk, while fun, had tired her out. Callie looked at the little digital clock the car was equipped with. Near midnight.

Damn.

She sighed. Now was not the time. She planned on talking with Sans, and that was exactly what she was gonna do.

"So... about spying on me..."

Okay, maybe not the most coy opening, but Callie really didn't have the energy for much else. Besides, this was a short drive. She needed to get to the point quickly.

"Yeah, sorry bout that."

"Are you really?"

"Well, sorry I got caught."

She gave a weak laugh. "I appreciate the honesty."

"Yeah, well... I guess I owe you some." He replied.

Callie sat up a bit. "Well, in that case, can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"What exactly are you worried about with me? Did I... do something wrong?"

Sans turned his head. "No, no Callie. You didn't do anything wrong."

"Then why the espionage?"

The car had stopped. They were in front of the campus.

"Mind I drive around a bit more while we talk? I have a feeling sitting here in the dark might not be the best idea."

Callie nodded.

Sans put the car back into drive and began to make his way down the street.

"Did Frisk tell you Papyrus was insecure?"

"Yes."

"That he cares a lot about what you think?"

"Yes."

He sighed. "Well, there's a reason behind that. That's his story to tell ya, but I can guess you have an idea of what would cause those things."

She was silent for a moment. "... I do."

Sans nodded. "Yeah, well, then you can guess why I'm a bit protective."

"Well, yes, but... why me? You said I didn't do anything wrong..."

"You didn't. Well, not yet. There were a couple things Papyrus told me that were... that kinda caught my attention, ya know?"

Callie cocked her head to the side, eyebrows scrunching up in confusion. "What things?"

"Well, he told me he nearly let ya get hurt. He was so afraid that he failed you, and that was how you were gonna view him. As a failure."

Oh... oh no. "I- I told him that he was doing great. I even gave him a kiss before we said goodbye!"

Sans shook his head. "That just made him more determined to keep pleasing you. To try harder."

"S-should I not have kissed him?"

"No no no, that is not what I meant."

"W-well what do you mean?"

"I mean he's gettin serious about this. He's got every intention to keep this going."

Callie could only stare, wide-eyed. Sans noticed her surprise and let out a deep sigh.

"I'll be honest with ya kiddo, I wasn't expecting him to do this for that long. I thought it'd be maybe two dates, tops, before he realized he didn't actually feel that way."

"I uh... I thought the same thing."

He nodded. "Yeah. But... well..."

"He actually... he... he does feel that way about me?"

"Yep."

Callie felt herself slide back into her seat. Oh God. He actually had feelings for her. He actually wanted to be serious about this. This... this was a whole new can of tuna. Up until now, she'd been waiting for Papyrus to realize they wouldn't work out, that dating someone to make them feel better wasn't a good idea. But he had actually started dating her because he wanted to.

"So, ya see why that realization, the one you're havin' now, might make me a little concerned?"

Callie nodded, unsure of what else to say. This changed everything. She didn't even know where to begin.

"And there was something else he said that concerned me."

"W-what?"

"He said you were afraid to ask questions about him. About us. He didn't understand it, and he thinks somehow it's his fault."

"It's not!" She blurted. "It's not at all. It's me. It's all me. I- I didn't know what was appropriate to ask and I was scared if I said one wrong thing it'd ruin the re- the date."

Though she was sure Sans caught what she almost said, he chose to ignore it, and simply offer advice. "Well, lemme ease your fears. He's curious about humans. You're curious about him. He's eager to learn and more eager to answer. On top of that, it's simply an important topic to talk about."

"Because we're together?"

"Yeah. And you gotta get into that kinda stuff to understand one another."

"But what if I ask something too personal?"

Sans rolled his eyes. Or... eyesockets. "It's a personal topic to begin with."

"But... what if I offend him?"

"Offend him? Trust me, it's literally impossible to offend him. Hurt him? Yeah. But you won't offend him."

"What if I make him uncomfortable?"

"It's gonna get uncomfortable any way ya slice it, kiddo."

Callie sighed. "A-alright. Alright. So I gotta get over this stupid fear, huh?"

"Only... if you wanna do this." He looked directly at her. "That's what I was trying to figure out from Frisk. If you actually wanted to do this. If you were starting to feel the same way about him. I wanted to make sure that he was putting those feelings in the right hands."

Callie nodded. "I... I understand."

The car had made several laps around the block since the beginning of this conversation. Sans once again pulled up to the front of the campus.

"So do you wanna do this? Really? I won't be upset if you say no, all I ask is that you let him down gently, before this goes any further. And I am sorry for using Frisk for this. That was a numbskull move. But I'm asking you now."

Callie took a deep breath. Did she want to do this? Did she think she could? All the same questions she had the first time she was asked this ran through her mind. How far could they take this? Would it really work long-term? Did she want it to? Would she... how far would she want to go? This was a big decision.

She thought about how happy Papyrus made her. How much he'd made her feel welcomed, cared for. The last thing she wanted was to lose that. But if she didn't actually want to date him, then she was just indulging in the affection.

The girl looked over at Sans. He was waiting patiently for her response.

Well, she... she didn't know how this was going to work, and the future was uncertain, but she knew one thing. Callie knew she didn't want to let him go so early. She wanted to at least try.

"I do. I do want to do this."

Sans smiled. "That's all I needed to hear. Now get home. Ya look exhausted."

"Can do. Goodnight, Sans. I'll seeya around."

She opened the door and began to exit the car.

"Goodnight, Cal. Treat my bro right, got it?"

Callie nodded. "I plan on it."

With that, she began making her way back home.

 **A.N.: Sorry if this chapter is a little shorter than the others. But I hope this turned out good. Let me know what you think! Thanks for all the support! ^^**


	11. Chapter 11

Waking up the next morning was strange. Callie came out of sleep slowly, eyes lolling about the room as she forced herself into a sitting position. The events of the night before were fresh in her thoughts, and the hours of rest now made it possible for her to actually comprehend them. As she trudged towards the bathroom, Callie felt the gears in her mind starting to shift.

The girl knew that she had to change her mindset about a lot of things. She was going to have to start thinking a little more long-term about where things were going to go with Papyrus. She was going to have to start talking to him about those things. Which meant... evidently... she had to let go of her fear of asking questions.

In simplest terms, she had to start getting more invested. Her relationship was more than an act of kindness on his part, or an act of desperation on hers. Neither of those things were the case. Papyrus was starting to develop feelings for Callie. And while Callie wasn't sure what she felt, that didn't mean she wasn't willing to find out.

She stared at herself in the mirror. Her breathing was a tad shaky.

"I hope I can do this." She said.

On that note, it also didn't mean the idea of finding out was any less terrifying.

* * *

Callie had just walked out of Walmart, gift in hand. It wasn't much, but she wanted to save expensive presents for Papyrus's birthday. This was just a little something she hoped he liked. Something to let him know she appreciated him.

It also gave her a reason to go talk to him. Callie had been wracking her brain trying to figure out how to open up the conversation they'd dropped back at the beach, without it seeming obvious she'd heard about how upset he'd been from other people. That'd probably make him feel worse. So, she decided to surprise him with a gift. It would just seem like her being sweet, while at the same time giving her a chance to casually bring the topic back up.

If she didn't get nervous and chicken out again, that is.

Callie continued on her walk, eventually reaching the apartment complex. She took a deep breath. The girl was a little nervous about this. She wasn't entirely sure if she was ready to really start diving into this, but knew she wasn't about to back out.

She approached the door.

Knock. Knock.

From inside, she heard two familiar voices.

" _Sans, can you get the door? I'm in the middle of cleaning!"_

 _"Sorry bro, I'm trying to catch up on my beauty sleep."_

 _"Sans, you lazybones! We can't keep our guests waiting at the door. Please?"_

 _"Alright, Paps. But don't go tellin' everyone I've stopped being lazy. I got a reputation to uphold!"_

 _"I swear to God, Sans..."_

Chuckling accompanied the sound of footsteps as Sans came to the door. It took a second for him to unlock it, but once he did...

"I was hopin' to see you around here soon." He said, leaning against the door frame.

Callie smiled, rubbing the back of her neck. "I had a hunch."

"So whatcha got in the bag?"

Callie leaned down slightly, opening it for Sans to peek inside.

"Nice. He'll love it."

"You think so?"

"Definitely."

"Sans, who's at the door?" Papyrus called from the other room.

The smaller skeleton turned his head. "Callie's here!"

There was the sudden sound of something hitting the floor as Papyrus rushed out of his room to meet his guest.

"Good afternoon Callie! What a wonderful surprise it is to see you here!"

"Aww thanks Paps. Speaking of surprises..." She held out the bag. "I got you a gift."

An expression of pure delight crossed his features. He took the bag from her and reached inside. When his hand reappeared with the object in hand, delight turned to confusion.

"Callie, thank you so much for this! But... might I ask what 'this' is?"

"It's called a Rubik's Cube. It's a kind of puzzle. You jumble up the colored squares, then try and match them. If it's done correctly, each side should be one color."

"A new puzzle!" He exclaimed, scooping Callie up in a hug. "Thank you! You know me so well."

Callie returned the hug. "Well, you said gift giving is a part of dating. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I forgot such an important rule?"

Looking to the side, she saw Sans giving her a thumbs up.

"Well, I see you guys have some important dating business to attend to. I'm gonna take my napping back to my room."

Sans gave an audible yawn, as if to prove his own tiredness, and took his leave. It was obvious what he was doing. Callie was all at once grateful and nervous. This meant she couldn't back out, at least not if she wanted to stay on Sans' good side.

Papyrus broke the hug, and led Callie over to the living room. He took a seat on the couch, then pat a spot beside him for her. She sat.

"So..." She began. "How are you?"

Let's try and begin this like a normal conversation.

"I am doing very well, thank you for asking. And how are you? You haven't been attacked by any more sources of water have you?"

Callie chuckled. "No, no. I'm doing good. But... well... speaking of the ocean thing..."

Slow. Deep breaths.

"I was thinking about the conversation we were having before that wave interrupted us. We didn't get a chance to really talk. I was wondering if you'd like to give that another try."

"You mean you'd like to learn about monsters?"

Callie nodded. "Yeah! Uh... well... more about you, individually. As a monster."

Oh God that sounded terrible.

"... And you can ask me about myself! Since we're both curious. Like you said, it opens so many doors of conversation!"

She really hoped she worded that right. Callie was really nervous about opening up this door. If she hesitated or backed out again, Papyrus would feel like it was his fault again. And that was the last thing she wanted.

"... Are you sure?" He asked.

Just that little bit of hesitation on his part showed just how much her behavior worried him.

"Excellent!" Papyrus exclaimed. "Where shall we start?"

"... Um..." she began. "Would you like to go first? You can ask me anything you want to about humans."

This would give Callie an opportunity to see where Papyrus's comfort level was when it came to these personal questions. It'd help her know what she could open with.

He smiled. "I'd love to!"

"Great. So... what do you want to ask me?"

"Hmm... I've noticed humans can look very different from one another. How many different kinds of humans are there?"

Huh. That was an interesting topic to start with. "Well I mean... we're all one species, but us humans come in many different sizes, colors, and shapes. It depends on where you come from and what your parents looked like. Though sometimes... appearance can come from further back in the family tree..."

Callie brushed a wisp of white hair away from her face.

"But to answer your question, there are many 'types' of humans. Too many to count, really. But we're all the same creature."

"Interesting!"

"Yep. Anything else you wanna know?"

"Well I figured you would ask me a question next."

"Oh, uh... okay. Sure. Just gimme a minute to think." Callie said.

"Alrighty!"

She took a deep breath. What did she want to ask? Something simple. You don't have to get too deep into this, not yet. Just take it one question at a time.

"... Are you... how many other skeleton monsters are there?"

He smiled. "Well my brother and I are the only full skeletons, but now that I know humans have skeletons inside them, it seems like we aren't the only ones anymore!"

"O-oh." The only full skeletons? So they were alone back in the Underground. That... was actually pretty sad. But she didn't want to worry him again, so she kept the conversation going.

"That's neat! So... it's your turn."

"Well, I'm curious... can you feel the skeleton inside of you?"

... Callie paused for a moment. Okay, okay, do NOT go down that train of thought.

"Well... sort of. I can feel the structure beneath my skin at different points. And I can certainly feel it when something injures one of my bones. Like if it breaks or something."

Papyrus's eye-sockets widened. "Bones can break?"

Oh shit. "N-not easily, no. Like if an injury is very, very traumatic, they might. But they can be healed back up fairly easily!"

"... I see. W-well then... your turn!"

It was obvious the prospect of a broken bone frightened Papyrus. Shit. She fucked up.

"Are you okay? I didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh no, you didn't scare me! The Great Papyrus does not get scared! I've just... never heard that before."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely!" While he was still feigning some of his confidence, Papyrus looked at least a little better. Maybe if they just moved on, he'd feel a little better too.

"Uhm... okay. Well... so back at the beach, you said you didn't have to worry about drowning. Why is that?"

"Oh that's simple. I don't have lungs!"

"But... if you don't have lungs... how do you breathe?"

"Magic of course!"

"O-oh. That's interesting."

"Indeed. So, my turn. Hmm... how many humans are there?"

"In the world?"

He nodded.

"Well... about eight billion of us, actually."

Papyrus's jaw dropped. "Wowie! There sure are a lot of humans out there!"

Callie nodded. "Yep. There really are. So... about the whole magic thing... does the magic allow you to do things a human can do? Y'know, taste, smell... feel..."

"Why yes! I have all the senses everyone else does. I have a decent sense of smell, hearing, an excellent palate, fabulous eyesight, and I can definitely feel. How else would I know you have soft lips?"

Oh my God, you fucking charmer, Callie thought.

"Alright, my turn!"

"Go for it."

She had to say, this actually wasn't going too badly!

"Where do humans come from, exactly?"

... Until now.

 **A/N: Hey guys, sorry I haven't been able to update for the past few weeks. I just moved to a new state and I've had a lot of college/job related things to deal with. But I'm back now! I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Let me know how I'm doing, and thank you for the support!**


	12. Chapter 12

Callie felt herself freeze as soon as the question was out of Papyrus's mouth.

"Where we... come from?"

"Yes!"

"I... I'm a little confused, to be honest." She said. "Do you mean ancestral origins or...?"

She really hoped that was what he meant.

He shook his head. "I mean how do human parents create their children?"

Nope, it was... well... that question. Callie really didn't want to get into that topic so early in the conversation. She was hoping they'd cover much more ground, maybe have a few different conversations, before getting to the really personal topics like that. Well, as Sans said, it was gonna get uncomfortable any way she sliced it. And since the question was out in the open, there was really no way around it.

All Callie could hope for was that they didn't have to get into the topic that danced dangerously close to this one.

"Well... humans... it takes two people... they... contribute a bit of themselves, in the form of special cells, that once mixed, grow into a human baby. In addition... each parent has organs designed to deal with this process."

"Really?"

"Yep. It's a pretty neat process."

Please no follow up questions. Please no follow up questions. Please no-

"It's your turn!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"Huh? O-oh, you're right! It is."

Thank God, Callie thought. Bullet dodged. But what to ask?

"So... hmm... how does your body process food, if you have no organs?" That seemed like a decent-enough question, she hoped.

"Well, as with everything I can do, it's magic! It processes food and turns it directly into energy, which gives me my amazing strength and cunning!"

He smiled, putting his hands on his hips in a display of pride.

"That's really interesting!"

"Indeed! So, it appears to be my turn."

"Yep."

"So, what are these special organs humans have to make more humans?"

Bullet not dodged, then.

"Uhh... well..." Callie rubbed the back of her neck. "Men and women each have organs for it. Though women have a different kind than men."

Papyrus's expression was expectant.

"A-anyway, they each have different jobs. A man's organs are meant to deliver his material, while a woman has organs designed to receive and carry the material. She carries the child inside her body until it's developed enough to come out."

"... I see." Papyrus said. "Interesting!"

Callie nodded. "It is. So..." Time to think of another good question. "Do... can skeletons get sick?"

Papyrus shook his head. "Nope!"

"Nice!"

"Have you ever carried a child inside your body?"

Callie felt her face grow red. That... was certainly not what she was expecting to hear.

"No! No, never. I-I'm not ready for a baby. Besides... I've never... I never even... nobody wants to... with me..." She tapered off.

Nobody wants to have sex with the albino girl, she thought. Callie cast her eyes downward, letting her hair fall over her face.

Papyrus moved in closer and wrapped his arms around her. Even though he didn't exactly know what the process entailed, at least not fully, he could understand what she was saying. It was another part of life she'd been left out of. An important part. All because she was different.

"If it helps..." He began. "... I think they're missing out. You're great! Maybe even as great as me!"

Callie felt some tears prickling up behind her eyes.

"Thank you."

She returned the hug, pulling him in as tight as she could. He began to stroke her hair. Callie had to say, it was rather nice. Being held like this. Her body relaxed against him, and she sighed.

Callie pulled away a little, just enough to where she was facing him. Papyrus still looked a little solemn. In another rare moment of not over thinking, she leaned back in and pressed her lips to his teeth. He pressed back, even wrapping his hands around the back of her head. The act itself was awkward, and a little clumsy on both ends, but well-meaning.

They remained this way for a few moments before breaking apart.

Papyrus looked a little stunned, but that quickly turned into the same delight from earlier in the day.

"Wowie! My first kiss on the lips! Well, I don't have lips, but my first kiss where that was the intended spot!"

Callie smiled, feeling a little stunned herself. She was surprised, not only by her sudden burst of audacity, but also her enjoyment of their pseudo-kiss. A part of her felt... wrong... for it. Another felt guilty for feeling that way. And yet another part wondered what would've happened if she tried to slip him some tongue. Add on another layer of self-disgust and you've got a nice emotionally confused sandwich.

"You're a good kisser." She said, trying to hide her conflicting feelings.

"I am?" A look of genuine surprise crossed his face. But he quickly shook it off. "I mean, of course I am! I am the Great Papyrus. Failure is not in my vocabulary. Even though I just said the word. But that's how great I am! Using words not in my vocabulary in their correct context!"

Callie had caught on to what this behavior meant by now. She hoped that maybe, with time, she could help him gain some confidence in himself.

Even if she probably needed to do the same.

* * *

The questions had pretty much stopped for the day. Callie was kind of glad. Even though there was still a lot ahead, and at some point the subject of all subjects did need to be addressed, for now the two were done. It was kind of a silent mutual agreement. Papyrus and Callie were still sitting on the couch. Callie was watching some t.v. while Papyrus worked on his new Rubik's Cube. It was nice. Peaceful.

In a way, Callie felt at home. Everything here was relaxed and welcoming, without any hint of prejudice or hidden malice towards any of them. When she really thought about it, this place felt like its own little bubble of normalcy. In here, Callie was just a college student cuddling with her boyfriend, while his brother napped in the other room.

It was a normal sounding scenario. She loved it. Who cared if she was the creepy albino that nobody wanted to fuck? Who cared if her boyfriend and his brother were literally all bones?

As long as they weren't out in the open... nobody. Not a damn soul.

... If only this could last, so Callie wouldn't have to be so conflicted about the less than socially acceptable feelings budding in her chest.

 **A/N: This chapter I was a little nervous about, because this topic is one that can go wrong very easily, and for many different reasons. I didn't want it to sound over-the-top or come across as childish. So I hope I did okay with finally getting the topic on the table. Anyway, thank so much for all the feedback and support! And thank you for reading!**


	13. Chapter 13

The sun had down considerably by now. The sky was tinted deep pink, with just a little bit of velvet blue creeping in on the horizon. Callie had dozed off earlier, curled up against Papyrus, but was now preparing for an evening walk with him.

He'd gone off to change, so Callie was sitting on the couch alone. To be honest, she was glad to have a little time to herself. It had been a long, strange day, and there was a lot of information to process. Callie knew that the conversation they'd had earlier was the start of a new phase in their relationship. A more open, honest phase. Questions could be asked freely, and answers could be given just the same. And while she was glad for this, even proud of herself for opening it up... Callie found herself frightened.

All in all, she had no idea where this relationship was going. She had no idea where she wanted it to go. True, it had been only been going on for a whopping month and a half, but this... this was a different situation than what most other people had to deal with. In a normal relationship, there was at least some vague understanding of what was supposed to happen. All the possibilities were on the table, laid out by generation upon generation of fellow human lovers.

Here... there was no point of reference. Callie was completely on her own. No human had dated a monster before. Sure, there were pieces of literature and film, but those didn't really mirror the reality of her situation. Besides, usually being with a monster was considered a bad thing unless said monster took the form of an attractive human.

... Though... it wasn't all bad. The other monsters might be able to help. And Sara had been a font of emotional support. This made her feel a tad better, but it didn't make the situation much easier. This was still unknown territory, and in the end, Callie and Papyrus had to traverse it alone.

"Ready to go?"

Callie looked up. Papyrus had changed into a button-up shirt and a nice pair of black pants.

"I sure am. But... might I ask... why do you look so fancy? We're only going for a walk."

"Well I aim to impress! I felt bad that you came over while I was in my cleaning outfit, and I forgot to change once we started talking, so I'm doing so now!"

Callie got up and walked over to him. "Pap, you don't always have to dress up for me."

"But I want to! I always like to look my best for every occasion."

It took her a moment, but Callie thought she understood what he meant. She decided not to push the topic.

"Well, you certainly accomplished that. You look very handsome."

"I know! Who wouldn't want to go out with such a cool skeleton?"

Callie smiled and grabbed his hand. "I have no idea."

* * *

The two had decided to go to a nearby park and walk down the trails there. Callie liked this idea, as not only were the nature trails scenic and none too hot, they were also secluded. Away from prying eyes. It was a rare chance to go on a date without many people giving them dirty looks.

Or, at least, so she had hoped.

As they entered the trail, the lighting from the sky became less and less prominent. A canopy of trees blocked the dying sun from their view. Only patches of gold shone through here and there, giving the whole area a somewhat mysterious aura. It reminded Callie of an enchanted forest one might read about in a fairy tale.

She looked up at her companion.

Such a fairy-tale couple we are, the girl thought. The albino and the skeleton. Now that's a story Disney would never tell. Which was funny, because it'd contain real magic.

This brought a question to Callie's mind. And since there had been relative silence for most this walk, Callie figured she'd ask.

"Say Pap?"

"Yes?"

"You say you have magic where you come from, right?"

He nodded. "I do say that!"

"Well..." She began. "I was wondering about that. What can you do with magic? How does it work?"

Papyrus stopped in his tracks.

"Well... magic can do basically anything! We used it to cook, to fight, and it's what keeps us alive."

"All monsters are kept alive by magic?"

"And humans too, of course!" He exclaimed.

Callie raised an eyebrow. "What... what do you mean?"

"Your soul."

"My... soul?"

He nodded. "Yes, your soul!"

"I... h-how do you..."

She couldn't even finish the question. She didn't know exactly what she was asking. This was a whole different topic, the subject of souls. It went into the territory of spirituality and religion.

Papyrus looked at her with an expectant expression.

Well, she'd opened the door.

"... How do you... know... souls exist?"

"Oh that's easy, I've seen them!"

Callie felt her stomach drop. "W-what?"

"Yes, I've seen souls before!"

"...How... when... how is that possible?"

He'd seen them? What did that mean, he'd seen them?

"Well, a human soul can exist outside its body, unlike a monster soul. It's quite a sight!"

"Does a human have to be... could... you..." God, how could she word this without it sounding bad? "Could you see anyone's soul, or are there special circumstances?"

He thought for a minute. "Well, usually a human soul only comes out during a magical fight. But really, it can be called out at any time."

Callie let that sink in. A soul could be called out at any time.

"I could even call out your soul if you would like!"

Her eyes widened to the point of discomfort, and her mouth popped open in shock. Did he just offer to show Callie her own soul? She honestly had no idea how to feel about that. Did she want to see that? Could she handle that? Seeing her own soul, her own being, lain before her?

She thought back to the mountain, where Papyrus first met her. Callie remembered her original plan. It was something she actually hadn't thought about for quite a while. Maybe that was because she didn't want to think about it. Committing suicide was such an ugly thing, and her near-attempt wasn't something she was proud of. The idea that she did, in fact, have a soul somehow made it all the more horrible.

What would happen if she saw the soul she was going to discard?

"I- I'm alright, Pap. I think I'd prefer to keep my soul in my body."

She gave a nervous chuckle, hoping he couldn't see the shock in her features.

A look of concern crossed his face, but he quickly turned it back into a smile.

"Alrighty then! Well, let's keep walking. That is why we're here after all, and it'd be a shame if we didn't accomplish our goal!"

Callie nodded. "Sounds good to me."

She took his hand, and the two continued walking further down the trail. Callie tried to hide how shaken she was by his offer. Not that she thought he had any malicious intent (hell she didn't think he was capable of malicious anything), but the prospect was so... mind-boggling. It rocked the very foundation of her reality. While she'd come to accept magic fairly easily, somehow this was just on a whole different level.

But... that was not something to think about now. So, it was confirmed she had a soul. Fantastic. At least that took care of the question of life after death. That was quite a biggie. One existential load off her mind. She really should be relieved. Callie got the answer to life's biggest question without even having to die.

She took a deep breath.

Callie let her eyes wander. The sun had set now, and moonlight was now seeping through the trees. But it seemed that wasn't their only source of light. In her introspection, Callie hadn't noticed small lights lining the path, illuminating everything ahead. It was a different kind of enchantment now, more inviting and romantic. She fancied the the artificial bulbs were fairies and sprites, guiding them down the trail.

Hey, considering who she with, that idea actually didn't seem out of the realm of possibility.

After a while they came to a small pond. There was a lovely little gazebo in front of it, with a bench around the interior. Callie gestured to it, and Papyrus gave an emphatic nod.

They took a seat facing out towards the lake. It wasn't as covered by trees, so the moon reflected off of the water. A couple water lilies bobbed up and down with the ripples. A duck casually swam by and quacked.

As she looked out at the scenery, Callie heard a yawn, and felt an arm wrap around her shoulder. Or, well, the bones of an arm. Her eyes drifted up to Papyrus, smiling and looking a bit proud of himself.

"You think you're smooth, do you?"

"Oh I don't just think so, I know so! Behold, I've caught you in my arms without you even noticing! Until it was too late, of course."

"Oh no, trapped in the grasp of The Great Papyrus! Whatever shall I do now?"

Callie threw an arm over her face, feigning despair.

He pulled her in closer, letting out one his usual "Nyeh-heh-heh" laughs.

The girl threw her head back, keeping up with her act.

Papyrus moved in a little closer.

Callie, realizing her arm was starting to hurt being in its position, let it fall back at her side. She opened her eyes. Papyrus was hovering directly above her, shooting her a classic grin.

Something inside of her began to feel warm. It was soft, subtle, and somehow enveloping. There was a slight sense of drunkenness.

A buzz.

She stretched her neck up and kissed him. He leaned down to make it easier for her, and cocked his head a little to the side. Callie felt her eyes flutter closed.

Suddenly, an unfamiliar female voice spoke from behind them.

"Well, if it isn't the dirty bone-fucker!"

Callie's eyes shot open.

A group of three girls, who she assumed were around her age, stood in front of the gazebo. They all looked at Callie with disgust and malice in their eyes.

And in each of their hands, the girls held a fistful of small rocks from the trail.

 **A/N: Well, here's my newest chapter! I really hope everyone liked it! Let me know what you all think. Thank you so much for all the support and feedback!**


	14. Chapter 14

The buzz drained out of Callie's body, being replaced by a cold dose of uneasiness and slight panic. She wasn't as worried about herself as much as she was Papyrus. These girls had every intention of hurting them, and Callie didn't know how he was going to handle it.

Swallowing her fears, the girl stood up.

"Yeah, you!" The head of the trio called. "You're the freak we've been seeing around school!"

Callie clenched her fists.

"I... I am. What of it?"

"What you're doing is wrong, you know that right?"

The second chimed in. "It's against nature."

"It's fucking disgusting. And we won't tolerate it."

Every muscle tightened. With her heart pounding, Callie walked over the entrance of the gazebo.

"What I do... with my boyfriend... is none of your damn business."

Suddenly, she heard the sound of creaking wood. Papyrus had stood up, and was facing the girls as well. Callie mouthed the word "no", but he only shook his head and joined mher at the entrance.

"Good evening, ladies!" He called, his tone pleasant.

The three seemed to grow more angry at the sight of him.

Oh no, Callie thought.

This was bad.

This was so bad.

"You three seem to be going down a bad path in life."

"Us? We're not the ones fucking monsters!"

Papyrus stepped in front of Callie. As he about descend onto the pathway, she grabbed his arm. He looked back at her. Callie's expression was grave, fearful. Her mouth was formed into a hard line, and her eyes had lost any shine in them.

"Don't." She whispered.

He merely shot her a reassuring smile before joining the girls.

"But just because you're a little misguided, it doesn't mean you all can't be great people! Anyone can a good person if they just try!"

"And who are you to be giving us a moral lecture? You're a monster!" The leader shouted, preparing yo throw.

He stood tall, placing a hand over his chest.

"Oh forgive me, I haven't even introduced myself. I am The Great Papyrus! Formal member of the Royal Guard!"

"The wh...? It doesn't matter. I don't care who you are. You're a freak."

She hurled a decent-sized rock at him. It bounced off of his skull and landed in front of his feet. Papyrus clutched at the wounded spot and began to rub it.

"Golly, that hurt." He said. "That was highly unnecessary! And rude!"

Callie took a step forward. Papyrus held out a hand in a "wait" gesture.

"Even so, I, The Great Papyrus, am electing to spare all of you." Papyrus spread his arms out. "In fact, I welcome you all with open arms. Humans and monsters need not fight anymore!"

Spare? What did he mean, spare? Was he going to... there was no way he could-

Callie's thoughts were interrupted by a sudden pain in her forehead. One of them, she didn't know which, had thrown a particularly jagged rock at her. It was a pretty hard throw, too, because Callie felt blood begin to trickle down her face.

She didn't see Papyrus's reaction, as she wincing in pain, but the girl could sure as hell hear it.

"Now you've crossed the line from unnecessary to completely unacceptable!"

"Aww, did we hurt your little whore?"

He was silent for a moment.

"The only people you've hurt... are yourselves."

Callie heard a strange, almost electronic sound, followed by screaming. Her eyes popped open. Looking up, the girl saw Papyrus and the girls, now separated by a line of bones. Above these bones were three glowing hearts. Two were read, and one was yellow.

The girl felt the breath leave her body. W-were those... souls? Was that what her soul looked like? A heart? Callie clutched at her chest.

The souls turned blue and fell to the ground.

"Alright! Are you all ready to start the fight?"

None of them said anything. At some point in this series of events, the girls had dropped all of their rocks. They lay on the ground... next to their souls.

Papyrus conjured up three more bones, each one piercing a heart. Callie felt her stomach drop. He... he wasn't... he wouldn't... KILL them, would he?

The girls simultaneously winced in pain. The hearts flashed in and out of existence for a few seconds, then stabilized. The bones disappeared.

"You're... you're supposed to jump over the bones, girls."

All three were trembling. It seemed that none of them knew what the hell was going on. One of them started to cry. Sensing this, Papyrus called down his bones. The hearts disappeared.

Papyrus sighed. "It's clear you've never been in a magical fight before. I apologize for not realizing this. But don't think that means I will stand for this behavior! For now, I will grant you mercy. But if you ever hurt my Callie again... well... be prepared for a real fight."

As soon as the words were out of Papyrus's mouth, the three ran off in the direction they'd come from.

Papyrus turned back to Callie. Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates and her mouth was agape. He walked up to her and gently cradled her face in his hands. His eye sockets focused on the wound.

"Callie, they've injured you. I'm... I'm so sorry. I should never have let this happen. I have failed you."

Papyrus let go of her face, head hanging downwards.

"I will walk you home. But if you no longer wish to date me after this... I understand."

Callie forced herself out of her state of shock. This may have been a hell of a lot to take in, but she wasn't about let Papyrus do this to himself.

She moved in closer, placing her forehead against his. Callie placed a hand on either side of his face, bringing it up to face her.

"You haven't failed me at all, Pap. You're... you're great. Thank you so much for protecting me."

"But you're hurt!"

"So are you." She said, gesturing to the now darkened and dirtied spot on Papyrus's forehead.

"Oh... that is nothing but a bruise! You're bleeding!"

"No no no, it stopped. It was a minor cut. And it's not your fault. Some people can't accept the idea of a monster and a human together. It's just... a problem we have to deal with."

Callie took Papyrus's hand. "And we're doing it together."

He smiled. "Thank you, Callie."

She reached up to kiss the wound on his head. "You're welcome. Now let's go home. We should let everyone know what happened."

Papyrus nodded, and the two began walking back. All the while, Papyrus kept an arm wrapped around Callie.

* * *

"So those girls tried to start a fight, eh?" Sans asked.

It was only a couple hours after the incident. Sans had made some phone calls, and now everyone was gathered in the apartment for an emergency meeting. Callie was explaining what had happened.

"Yes. They uh... didn't like that I was with Papyrus."

Sara tapped her fingers against the counter top. "I can't say I'm surprised. But I certainly wish this hadn't happened."

"Yeah. This isn't the first time people have... shown displeasure..." That was putting it lightly. "At my dating Papyrus. But this is the first time its gotten physical."

Undyne clenched her fists. "I'd show them some displeasure if I knew what they looked like."

Alphys placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Now now, there's no need for more violence, Undyne. We cannot expect progress if we always resort to that." Asgore explained.

She took a deep breath. "Yeah. I know, I know. It's just hard when I hear they're attacking my _friends."_

"It's a difficult thing for all of us. We've all experienced prejudice in one way or another." Toriel spoke up. "Why, just other day, a group of women told me that I was an unfit mother, and that Frisk was better off in an orphanage."

Callie felt anger build up in her chest. "I'm so sorry, Toriel."

"It's alright, dear. That's what we're here to talk about, after all. Now that it's gotten to the point of physical violence, it's important that we all share. We don't want this sort of thing to ever happen again. "

The girl nodded. Sara moved to wrap an arm around her shoulder.

"Now go on, Cal, finish the story. We need to know all the details."

"Okay." She said. "Well, I basically told you everything. They came up with rocks. I tried to tell them off. Papyrus stepped in and tried to cool down the situation. They hit him, then me. Papyrus retaliated with magic, but quit as soon as he saw how scared they were. Throw in a few nasty names and there you have it."

"What names did they call you, Callie?" Asgore asked. "If I'm going to file a report to bring back to the embassy, I must know everything."

She bit her lip. Callie really didn't want to repeat those thing to all her friends. One, it was just really uncomfortable and personal. Two, Frisk was here. And three... well... it opened up a door she wasn't ready to open.

Papyrus noticed her discomfort, and stood up. "I can tell you, if you want! I have a photographic memory for insults!"

Oh no. Somehow that was infinitely worse.

"T-there's no need, Pap. I can do it."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded. Callie turned her head towards Toriel. "Cover Frisk's ears."

The queen did so.

"Alright. They opened by calling me... a... a... dirty bone-fucker."

Callie was met with various expressions, ranging from shock to outrage to... well... just rage. Asgore took a deep breath and jotted that down.

"Go on."

"They called me a freak, but I get that often. They told me how wrong and unnatural my relationship with Papyrus was. They called Pap a monster. And then... well... they called me his whore. That's... that's it. That's the whole story."

Undyne slammed her fist so hard into the counter that it left a dent. Sans right eye was twitching. Alphys had one hand over her mouth. Toriel uncovered Frisk's ears and sighed. Sara seemed to be deep in thought. Asgore finished writing. Keeping his face stoic and expressionless, he stood up.

"Thank you, Callie. I appreciate your willingness to speak up." He offered out a hand to her.

She took it, and they shared a brisk shake.

"I must go now. The embassy will be interested in hearing about this."

Sara stood up as well. "Is there anything I can do to help? I won't want to stand by while this kind of harassment keeps happening to everyone."

The king gave her a weak smile. "Just do what Callie has been doing. Vouch for us. Make sure humans know we have no ill will."

She gave a short nod. The king exited.

"Callie, do you want me to give you a ride home?" She asked. "I have an important presentation tomorrow and I need some sleep, but I don't want to leave you."

The girl looked over at Papyrus. He still looked rather upset.

"Nah, I'm alright. I think Pap and I still have some things to discuss."

She nodded. "Alright. Well, whatever happens, just text me, okay?"

"Can do Sara. Good luck tomorrow."

After a quick hug, Sara was out the door. The other monsters followed suite, each giving a warm goodbye. Undyne promised that she'd be on the lookout for any human punks talking about her and Papyrus. Callie thanked her, but said not to hurt any of said punks.

In the end, it was back to Sans, Papyrus, and Callie.

"Say Cal?" Sans asked.

"Yeah?"

"If you guys are up too late talkin', feel free to crash here. I'm ready to hit the hay, and I don't want two attacks in one night."

"Thanks, Sans. I might take you up on that."

"Cool. Anyways..." He began walking down the hallway. "G'night."

"Night, Sans."

He shuffled off to his room. Callie turned to Papyrus. "Are you okay, Pap? You still look upset."

"Callie... I just... don't understand. Why do they hate us? What's wrong with us dating?"

She sighed. How was she going to explain this?

"... We're different, Pap. They hate us... just because we're different."

And, unfortunately, that was really all there was to it.

 **A/N: And here's chapter 14! I hope you all liked. Let me know what you think so far! Thank you all so, so much for all the positive feedback! It's really given me a lot of confidence. Anyway, until next time!**


	15. Chapter 15

Callie awoke to the scent of bacon and what she could assume to be pancakes. She'd taken up residence on the couch, staying the night there as she figured she would. Her eyes searched around the room. Morning sunlight spilled through the windows, giving the living room a slightly golden glow. She'd never been here this early. It was quite nice.

She could see Papyrus in the kitchen, his attention bouncing between the two pans he was cooking in. Sans was sitting at the counter, one hand grasping a mug of coffee. There was something inviting about the scene.

The girl snuggled into her makeshift bed, closing her eyes again. It was soft, warm, somewhat enveloping. A small part of her didn't want to leave it. Any of it. This apartment was quickly becoming her little safe-haven. Where she came to relax, to feel safe, to be away from prying eyes. She had the idea, for a moment, of staying right where she was. Waking up every morning to her boyfriend cooking and his brother giving him a hard time.

She even pictured... just for a split second... coming to meet them from Papyrus's bedroom. Callie saw herself draped in one of his button-up shirts, her most private areas just barely covered by the garment.

Her eyes snapped open.

No.

NO.

Absolutely NOT.

Callie shook herself out of that thought process immediately. She wouldn't even entertain... just no. They hadn't been together that long, and that conversation was not one they'd had. Besides, did she didn't even know if she would want to. There was something inherently wrong about the idea. As much as she hated it, Callie found herself thinking to what those girls said.

"Against nature."

"Disgusting."

A small part of her... agreed. And it angered Callie. She hated herself for agreeing with anything those bigots said, and hated herself more for thinking that about someone who made her feel so cared for.

Another part of her was naturally curious. Could he... do that? What would it feel like? What would HE feel like? What would he be like in bed? Callie remembered their kiss back at the gazebo. That light and fuzzy feeling. She couldn't stop a quick image of his hand sliding between her legs and-

As soon as the image was there, Callie felt self-disgust rise in her gut. The word 'wrong' replayed in her mind over and over.

God, this whole topic caused such an argument within herself. Callie decided to shut it down for now, and just go have breakfast. Now was not the time.

"Good morning!" Papyrus called, seeing her approach.

"Morning Pap." She replied.

Callie walked over and gave him a kiss. That image of her being in his button-up reared its ugly head.

"So you're making pancakes?"

"I am! A cook must be versed in many forms of food preparation!"

She smiled. "They look wonderful. Thank you."

"You are quite welcome! Go, take a seat, it will be done in a minute."

After another quick kiss, Callie placed herself beside Sans. He took a large gulp of coffee, then looked over to meet her gaze.

"Howya doin, kid?"

"I'm doing alright, Sans."

He glanced up at the purplish spot on her forehead. The scab in the center was small, but visible.

"And that?" He asked, much more quietly.

She placed a hand over it. "Oh, that? It... it's doing better. A little painful. But fine."

He nodded.

Papyrus set a plate in front of each of them. Pancakes and bacon. He even added whipped cream in the shape of a heart for her. Callie couldn't help but think about how this was the same shape as a soul. Such a simple shape. The shape of love. A shape found in jewelry, cards, chocolates, tattoos... everywhere. And all this time it was the image of a human soul. That was a difficult concept to wrap her head around.

"He must be really sweet on ya." Sans commented.

"Sans! No puns at meal-time!"

He chuckled. Callie smiled, trying to hide the ever-growing ball of complex emotions in her psyche. Just smile and eat your pancakes, she told herself.

Deal with all this later.

* * *

Now more than ever, Papyrus was insistent on walking Callie home. She had a feeling he might never let her go home alone again. Not that she minded his company.

But, as usual, people were glaring at them. Some were directed at Papyrus, but it felt like most of the attention was on her. Callie half-imagined that they knew what she'd been thinking earlier today. But really, it was more like they assumed she was already DOING the things she'd been thinking earlier today.

And probably a lot more.

As they approached the campus, Papyrus spoke up.

"Say, Callie?"

"Yes Pap?"

"... those names... the girls called you... I know they must be awful, but what do they mean?"

Of course he'd ask that now.

Damn it.

"W-well... which one?"

"I suppose start with the first one. What is a 'bone-fucker?'"

Callie tried to get over the fact that such a word came from Papyrus's mouth. It seemed so unnatural, hearing him curse.

Of course the question that went along with said curse wasn't an easy thing to think about either.

"Uhm... well... o-okay. Do you know how I mentioned that... that humans..."

She trailed off. Papyrus was looking at her expectantly. His head was cocked slightly to the side. She honestly didn't know what to say. This was such a sensitive subject, and this was not how she wanted to introduce it. Through the hatred spat out of another person's mouth. It wasn't right.

Or maybe that was just an excuse for cowardice. Callie didn't know how he'd react to such information, and the idea of talking about it like this was terrifying. She didn't trust her own wording enough to say it without everything getting jumbled up.

So, she came to a resolve. "They were just spitting hate, Pap. It doesn't matter what it means. We shouldn't even give their words the time of day. That's giving them the power."

He was silent for a minute, then nodded.

"You're right Callie!" He said. "Wowie, did I get lucky! Not only are you sweet, you're smart too!"

She smiled. That was very kind of him to say, even if her motives weren't exactly what she said they were. She kissed him, much to the disgust of the humans around them.

"Thanks Pap. Now let's go home."

They began making their way back towards Callie's home. She sighed in relief. That was a bullet dodged... for now.

 **A/N: Hey guys! Sorry if this was a little short. But I hope you all enjoyed anyway. I figured it was time for Callie to start having some more... complicated... feelings for ol' Pap. Hope it turned out well. Let me know what you guys think so far! Thank you all so much for all the wonderful feedback!**


	16. Chapter 16

Life had gotten somewhat chaotic in past few weeks. Not in the sense that Callie was flooded with work or anything, but in the emotional sense. The assault at the park had left her somewhat paranoid, on her guard all the time... especially on campus. She had a quite a fear that those girls would spot her and come after her, only this time with more force. It made even going to and from class difficult. Of course... this wasn't her only issue.

Those thoughts she'd had about Papyrus... disturbed her. They caused a whole bubbling mix of emotions, some of which Callie didn't even really understand. And though she tried to bury them all, and bury them deep, once and a while they'd pop back up, sometimes at the worst possible time.

Needless to say, it certainly didn't make going on dates an easy task.

When a thought would pass through her mind while they were together, Callie tried her hardest to make sure he didn't notice her sudden wincing and fist-clenching. And if he did notice, she'd pass it off as stepping on something or needing to use the bathroom. Childish, she knew, but effective enough.

The girl pondered her situation, body splayed out on her dorm bed. She didn't know what to do. And though it embarrassed her to speak of it, Callie knew she had to talk to someone.

Unfortunately... her usual confidante was dealing with the other kind of chaos.

"What do you think I should wear to the meeting today?" Sara asked.

She held up two dresses, red and purple. The red was ankle length and high-necked, while the purple was knee-length and bore a V-neck.

"I know the red is less revealing, but it looks more like a ballgown than a professional outfit."

"Well then go with the purple. It looks nice on you."

"A little too nice. It's lovely, but it really accentuates my figure. And I mean that in the worst way. Not something you want for a presentation like this."

Callie nodded. It was a serious meeting. Sara had gotten more and more involved with monster affairs after the park incident. Seeing firsthand the bigotry against monsters turning violent, even to such a minor degree, had stirred up a fire in her belly. Especially considering it was her own friend who ended up the victim.

So, since there was so much work to be done when it came to monster-human relations, Sara found herself rather busy. She had even been working closely with Asgore to help fight the prejudices. Which, of course, led to their current predicament.

"...Do you have a blazer to wear over it?"

"Just a beige one."

"Hmm... I might have a black one for you to borrow. That'd look better."

Callie pulled herself up and walked over to her closet. And, sure enough, there was a black blazer, hanging on the very end. She'd bought it for job interviews and school presentations, but for now it seemed Sara needed it more.

She held it out to her.

"It's perfect! Thanks, Cal!"

"Of course, Sara. I think what you're doing is amazing. It means so much me that you're getting so involved."

Today, she and Asgore were giving a presentation to a few government officials on passing laws regarding monster employment. With Toriel's teaching job going so well, they'd hoped to get more people on board for expanding the opportunities for other monsters.

Sara gave Callie a hug. "Thank you."

After pulling away, she checked the time on her phone.

"Whoa shit, I gotta GO. I'll seeya later, Cal!"

"Seeya!"

And with that, Sara grabbed her laptop and headed out.

Alone now, Callie sighed. While she was very proud and supportive, Sara's schedule left Callie unable to talk to her about what had been going on. She didn't have the time, and Callie didn't want to burden her.

This meant Callie had two options. She could try and deal with this whole thing on her own, or... she could reach out to one of her monster friends. And considering how so very well dealing with it on her own on was going, that first idea was going straight out the window.

With a sigh, Callie looked in her contacts. Who could she possibly feel comfortable with talking about... well... this?

...She found herself drawing a blank.

Shit.

Come on, Callie, think!

Uh... Toriel?

The girl bit her lip. While she was sure Toriel could help with the paranoia, as she had a very calming demeanor, there was no way Callie could talk about the other part. She viewed the Queen as almost a second mother, or a really sweet aunt. So that was a no go.

Sans?

Oh sweet Jesus no. What was she supposed to say? So, I'm having dirty thoughts about your bro, any advice?

She shuddered. Callie saw no outcome where that would end well.

Alright, who did that leave?

Undyne and Alphys.

... Actually... that... might not be a bad choice. Alphys knew about anxiety and stress, while Undyne could probably help with self-defense and making Callie feel safer.

Yeah. Yeah!

And hell, those two were dating! They could probably offer some relationship advice. Callie might not get into all the details, but she could give a general idea as to the situation.

Callie scrolled through her contracts, evidently a short process, before reaching Undyne's number. But as she was about to click on her name the girl hesitated.

...Was it really fair to dump her personal problems on her friends like this? A part of Callie felt like she was using them by doing this. And she wasn't as close to them as she was Toriel or Sara, so... would they feel uncomfortable about her going to them for problems? Her thumb dropped away from the touch screen.

Maybe she could just wait until Sara gets home from the meeting? Or just swallow her discomfort and call the Queen? Or suck it up and...

No.

No.

She had to stop thinking like this.

"You are not a burden, Callie." She whispered.

The girl raised her thumb again and pressed Undyne's contact. As the phone rang, Callie stood up and began to pace. A part of her still felt nervous about going to her. She bit her lip.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hey... U-Undyne..."

"Callie! What's up?"

She paused. "I was wondering if you and Alphys were busy. I hate to be a bother, but... to be honest... I need to talk about some things. Or, well, I really need some advice. I mean, you don't have to, of course, I just...I'm sorry."

There was silence on the other end for a minute or two.

"Cal?"

"...Yeah?"

"Just come over, ya nerd."

 **A/N: So here's my next chapter! I hope you all liked it. I'm trying to get in some new and different interactions between characters, so this is my set-up for that. Thank you all so much for all the wonderful feedback. It means worlds to me. Anyway, see you all next time around!**


	17. Chapter 17

The scent of rich spices and honey greeted Callie as she entered the apartment. Judging by the large ceramic kettle sitting on the counter, it was coming from a pot of steeping tea. The smell was all at once welcoming and overwhelming in its presence. Much like the woman who was making it.

While Alphys had been the one to let Callie in, it was Undyne that ran up to give her a bone-crushing hug.

"Heya Cal, good to see ya!"

The girl tried and failed to replicate the hardy squeezing. "G-good to see you too, Undyne." She choked out.

The redhead let Callie go. "Sorry, sometimes I forget how fragile you humans are. Anyway, have a seat, the tea should be done by now."

Ribs still hurting, Callie made her way over to the living area. As she plopped down into the nearest chair, the girl noticed a plate of cookies that had been placed upon the coffee table. Despite having been around them for months now, monster hospitality never ceased to amaze her.

Alphys took a seat on the couch directly across from Callie.

"S-so, Callie, what's going on? Undyne said you needed to talk to us about something."

"Yeah um... I need to talk about a couple things, actually."

"Oh?"

She nodded. "I've been... I've been having a few issues. And you guys seemed like the people to talk to about them."

Alphys tilted her head to the side. "Why... why do you say that?"

"Well..."

Callie took a deep breath. She was suddenly finding herself hesitant to say anything. Something in her still felt like a pest. And, of course, there were certain things she feared saying.

Undyne returned from the kitchen, setting down a tray baring three tea cups and a bowl of sugar. After grabbing a cup for herself, she took a spot next to her girlfriend.

"Thank you." Callie said, taking her own cup.

She suddenly took a mental step back, examining the current situation. Here she was, an albino girl, sipping tea with a fish and a dinosaur in their living room, getting ready to discuss her feelings about her skeletal boyfriend. For some reason this scene reminded her of that famous painting of dogs playing poker.

And if that wasn't strange enough on its own, this scene was only taking place because her roommate was busy tackling an important government meeting... with a goat man.

...God, her life had gotten weird.

Shaking herself out of that, Callie began speaking again.

"Anyway, the issues I want to discuss involve things you guys are pretty experienced with."

"Well what are they? C'mon, we won't bite." Undyne said.

"Okay. Okay. I'm sorry. I'm really dodging the question here. So, recently I've been feeling really anxious. Paranoid, really."

"Is this about what happened at the park?" Alphys inquired.

Callie gave a brisk nod.

"Ah. You're worried about seeing those punks again, aren't ya?"

It seemed that it wasn't too hard for them to figure out that part. Callie breathed out a sigh of relief. It was good to have it out there.

"Yeah, I really am. And... I mean... honestly, it's not just them. The more I think about it, the more I realize how many people are against me. The park was just a reality check. There are bound to be people with much worse intentions, and it scares the shit out of me."

This was the first time she actually acknowledged this. The growing feeling of dread in her stomach as she thought of how many evil glares she's gotten, how many whispered words of hatred had been directed towards her. Though she was used to it by now, her recent choices had turned that hatred into malicious intent. Now it felt as if those stares and whispers could be threats and plots. There was a growing feeling of helpless that she couldn't control.

And worst part, the very worst, was that...

"I... some part of me feels that I deserve this. That I brought this on myself."

There was a stunned silence that swept over the room. All three just sat there, motionless, for several minutes.

Finally, Undyne stood up and walked over to Callie. She grasped the smaller woman's shoulders and gave her an intense glare.

"Callie, listen to me, and listen good." She said, teeth somewhat grit. "You. Do not. Deserve. To be hated. Or hit with rocks. Or called names. Not for your condition, and not for your choice of friends or boyfriend. Don't let anyone make you feel like that. Ever. Or I will personally hunt them down and tear their souls from their bodies."

"P-please don't do that." Callie said.

"Don't make it necessary for me." She said, shooting her a toothy grin.

Callie gave a nervous laugh, then nodded.

Undyne, seemingly satisfied with that answer, sat back down next to Alphys.

"A-alright. Now that we've got that cleared up, maybe we can help you p-properly deal with this." Alphys said.

"Okay."

"I can teach you a little self-defense, if you want. We could train together! That way if anyone tries to mess with you, they'll live to regret it."

"I'd... I'd really appreciate that, actually. Thank you."

"No prob! In the meantime, I'd suggest getting a weapon. Something to give you peace of mind when you're alone. I think I've got a spare sword I'm not using."

Alphys chimed in. "Undyne, I-I don't think she could carry your sword."

"Good point... a spear then? How's a spear sound?"

"Actually, we're not really allowed weapons on campus." Callie informed them.

Though really, she couldn't think of any place where openly carrying a spear would be an acceptable thing.

"Aww man. That's a lame policy. So you guys are just left defenseless?"

"I mean... we could call campus police if something happens. And I'm pretty sure we're allowed pepper spray."

"Just pepper spray?" She made a deep, frustrated growling noise. "Fine. Then at least get that. It'll provide some basic protection before you start training."

"Can do!"

"H-hey! Maybe we can invite Papyrus. He loves training with Undyne anyway, and I'm sure he'd love to give Callie some pointers." Alphys suggested.

Undyne's face lit up. "Yeah! That's great idea. Whatcha say, Cal? Wanna train with your boyfriend?"

Callie felt her stomach twist up in knots. Train with Papyrus? That would probably mean close, one-on-one contact. A lot of close, one-on-one contact. And he might use the training as an opportunity to show off how strong he was, which... wouldn't help the situation.

"You... okay there, Cal?" Undyne asked.

She bit her lip.

"There was... something else I wanted to talk to guys about. I-I figured since you two were dating and all, this might be something you guys could help me with."

"O-oh. You want... relationship advice?"

Callie nodded.

"Something going on between you and Papyrus?"

"I... well... sort of. I don't really know how to explain it." She said.

Liar, she thought to herself. You can explain it in a damn sentence.

"It's actually just something that's bothering me. He doesn't know about it. And I don't know how to bring it up."

"Are you scared of how he'll react or something? Cause knowing him, he's not hurt by what people say easily." Undyne assured her.

"It's not that I think he'll be hurt... it's just..." She sighed.

Callie looked down. For the first time in a while, she remembered the cup of tea in her hand. She had completely forgotten its existence in the midst of all this conversation. The girl brought the beverage up to her lips and took a sip. It filled her sinuses and overloaded her tongue on flavor. Really, she found the sensation sobering.

"The tea is really good." She commented.

Undyne crossed her arms. It was obvious she was waiting for an answer.

"Alright. Well... We've been dating a few months, and I'm really starting to... to have some strong feelings for him."

"Is that a problem?" Undyne asked.

"No... but... I mean, how are we supposed to do this? How does a human-monster relationship work? I mean what if... how would we... could we...if we're going to be together long-term..." She tapered off.

The two monsters were quiet for a minute, letting Callie's words sink in. Undyne continued to gaze at her, waiting for her to admit the real problem, while Alphys seemed to be deep in thought. Callie felt her cheeks flush with heat.

Suddenly, she felt a buzzing in her pocket. Oh thank God, Callie thought. Maybe someone needed her. Maybe she would have to leave right now and have a perfectly good reason for it.

But, when she took out her phone, her heart sank. It was a text from Sara.

"Meeting went great! But now Asgore and I have a lot more paperwork to get through. Won't be home till late tonight. Didn't want you to worry."

She texted back a quick "I'm glad it went well, thanks for telling me!" Before putting her phone back in her pocket.

"Sara was just letting me know how her meeting went. She'll wont be...home..."

When she looked back up, Callie saw twin expressions of realization on her friends faces. Alphys had her hand over her mouth, while Undyne sat open-mouthed.

"What is it, guys?" Callie asked, feigning ignorance.

"I know what this is about." Undyne said, her tone unreadable.

"M-me being worried about how Pap and I are going work long-term?"

"C'mon, Cal, what it's really about."

The girl turned her gaze downwards, towards her half-empty cup of tea.

"O-oh my goodness!" Alphys exclaimed. "You're really... you're worried about... that?"

"Don't tell him, please." Callie knew when the jig was up.

"Oh don't worry, we won't tell him." Undyne assured her.

"Thanks."

"But you're gonna have to."

"...I... how do I even talk to him about it?"

"Well, if you're nervous about asking him, I might be able to offer some advice."

"What do you suggest?"

"Ask Sans."

She shook her head. "No... no... that's out of the question."

Undyne sighed. "Okay, fine. That leaves you with only one option."

"And what's that?"

The fish once again walked over to her, placing a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Take a page from my book, and man up."

Callie sighed. Undyne might not have been the most sensitive of the monsters she'd met, but she was certainly the most straightforward.

"And if you have a hard time with that, I'll just lock you two in a closet until you spill."

"...Thanks, Undyne."

She smiled. "What are friends for, right?"

 **A/N: Well here's the next chapter! I really hope I characterized Undyne and Alphys correctly here. And I hope this chapter was alright! Thank you all so much for reading and for all the wonderful feedback! Let me know how I'm doing and what I can do to improve. Until next time, everyone!**


	18. Chapter 18

Everything was dark. Too dark. Not even the light of the moon shone through the window. Just infinite blackness in every direction. This meant that she had to rely on her other senses to discern where she was. Since her eyes were terrible anyway, this wasn't too difficult a task. Callie blindly reached into the darkness, searching for context clues.

Her hand touched the wall, but could find no light switch upon inspection. This was a bit annoying, but not much a problem. Callie didn't really need it that much anyway. She was just going to bed. All that required was scoping out her bed in a tiny dorm room and removing a few articles of clothing.

Hands outstretched, Callie shuffled further into the room. By memory alone, she could find where her side of the dorm was. And, subsequently, her bed. Once her fingers touched the yielding surface of the mattress, Callie sighed. After discarding her bra, her jeans, and her shoes, the girl slid under the covers. It didn't take long before she was settled, relaxed under the blanket and ready to sleep. After so many emotionally exhausting days, sleep came easy.

But... the feeling of an all-too-familiar hand creeping up her spine kept her from drifting off.

This hand made little circles around her back, a pleasant enough feeling on its own, slowly drifting towards her front side. There it took to her breast. It barely took one fingertip running over its sensitive center to make Callie bite her lip and cross her legs.

While that hand was busy at her chest, the other was playing with her hair. Twisting it, twirling it, even tugging gently to pull her head back. Teeth met with the crook of her neck and began nibbling. Callie's eyes rolled back a little.

Soon her breast was free, but the hand was moving in a much more troubling way, down towards her navel. It lingered there for a minute, teasing the skin of her abdomen, but soon continued its journey. It wasn't long before it hovering right over the split in her legs. Involuntarily, Callie crossed them tighter.

The teeth lifted from her neck. A very familiar chuckle filled her ears.

"Nyeh-heh-heh."

The hand gently split her legs apart again and slipped beneath her panties.

Callie gasped.

The initial sensation was a shock in its own right, but everything that followed nearly overloaded her senses. While two fingers had sunk themselves into her, the thumb was flicking at the sensitive spot above. Callie shook her head back and fourth, biting down on her lip to the point of blood. But one little brush against a certain spot made her gasp in pleasure.

God, it would be so easy to just give in. To just enjoy herself in this darkness, with the one person who made enjoying herself easy. Callie shimmied her panties down to her ankles, then spread her legs wider. She even turned herself on her back.

It would be so easy.

She was dripping, gasping, desperate for the kind of affection she'd been closed off from.

So... easy... to just...

"Ah!" She woke up.

Callie noticed her hand was between her legs.

* * *

Scrub.

Scrub.

Scrub.

It was almost three in the morning, but honestly she didn't care at the moment.

More. Fucking. Soap.

The hot water poured down her back. No, not hot. Scalding. She needed scalding water after that.

Callie looked down at her right hand. Honestly, she wasn't aware doing... that... in your sleep was a thing. She came to college to learn, but that wasn't the educational experience the girl was hoping for. Definitely not worth the price of tuition.

This thought made her laugh. It came out much more shaky and nervous than she was expecting, but after that dream, it didn't seem out of place.

Suddenly, Callie heard a knock at the door.

"Cal? Cal, you in there?"

The girl paused.

"...Sara?"

"Yeah! What are you doing in the shower this late?"

Oh just washing off the sin, Callie thought.

"I think the real question is why you just got back now. I know you said you'd be home late, but..." Callie let out a short chuckle.

There was silence on the other side of the door for a moment. Callie bit her lip, thinking she'd said something wrong. But before she spoke up to apologize, Sara answered.

"Oh, there was just a lot of paperwork. It was a freaking mountain."

"Ah, okay. Well, I'm glad you're done with it now."

"...Me too. So, why _are_ you taking a shower at three in the morning?"

Callie was silent, trying to come up with a reasonable excuse.

"Uhm... well... I had a nightmare..." Yeah, sure, nightmare. "And I woke up in a cold sweat, so I decided to take a shower to calm my nerves and all."

Again, it went quiet for a moment. "Aw, well... I hope the shower makes you feel better."

"It already is! I'll be out in a few minutes."

"Okay. Well, I'm heading off to bed. Goodnight Cal! Seeya in the morning!"

"Night Sara!"

Callie sighed, leaning against the tile walls of the shower. She was glad her lie had slipped by Sara's radar. Maybe it was the hour, maybe it was because body language didn't give her away, but somehow Sara hadn't noticed. Or, more likely, she saw through it but didn't want to pry.

Callie wasn't normally one to blatantly lie like that anyway, but she really wasn't in the mood to explain the embarrassing occurrence that prompted her shower this late at night. Or this early in the morning. Either way, it wasn't the right time. Though really, was there a right time to talk about something like this?

The girl finished rinsing the last bit of soap from her body and turned the spout off. She walked out into a world of fog , a fog so dense that took a moment for her to find her towel. When she wiped the sink mirror off, Callie noticed her skin was quite red. Whether that was from the scrubbing or the heat of the water, she didn't know.

"Jesus, I did a number on myself here." She mumbled.

Now that she had calmed down a bit, the girl took a step back and analyzed the situation. She'd done this to herself out of shame. Out of self-loathing. Out of self-disgust.

Over what?

Her curiosity?

... Yeah. Exactly. Her curiosity. This was a product of curiosity and a complete lack of sexual contact. Nothing more.

"I'm being ridiculous." She said.

Callie dried herself off, grabbed her T-shirt, and opened the door to her room. The blast of cold air was a drastic temperature change, but the sensation was a sobering one. It really helped clear her mind.

As she laid back down in her bed, Callie resolved to relax about this subject. It wasn't something to concern herself with, at least not at the moment. She knew the subject would come up eventually, but it didn't have to be now. She wouldn't force herself to talk about it. Not today. Not even this week. Just... soon.

For now, however, the only thing to worry about was getting back to bed.

* * *

The rest of the night had gone peacefully, without any dreams or nightmares to be had. Callie woke up that morning feeling refreshed, clean... relaxed. It was nice. Sara was still sound asleep, but that wasn't surprising. With how late she stayed up, it wouldn't shock Callie if she slept in past noon. And, since it was a Saturday anyway, there were no classes that either of them had to be awake for.

Callie stood up, making sure to stay quiet as she did so, and walked over to her dresser. Inside was an assortment of clothes that she was having trouble picking from. This was a conundrum she'd faced before she started getting out. What should she wear if she didn't have any plans, but didn't want to just lay around in her pajamas all day?

She shuddered at the memories. A lot of her clothing was rather nice, dressy but versatile. Callie had bought it to make herself feel better, but ended up never wearing them because nobody invited her out. It was nice to think that now, not having somewhere to go was a rare occurrence.

Since today was one of those days, she grabbed a pair of leggings and T-shirt to slip into. It could pass for an outfit, but it was really just something to lay around in all day. Just as she was putting her arm through the shirt, Callie's phone began ringing.

She scurried back to the nightstand between the two dorm beds and looked at the contact name.

... It was Papyrus.

Though she was a little hesitant about calling him, Callie didn't want be a coward. Plus, she didn't want the ringing to wake Sara up. Though it was a little too late on that one.

"Heya, Pap." Callie greeted.

Sara lifted her head up from the pillow. Her eyes were half-closed and there was hair stuck to the side of her face. Callie shook her head and gestured for her to go back to sleep. Sara did so immediately.

"Callie! Good morning! How are you?"

"I'm... I'm good. Just got up. How are you?"

"I'm excellent! Thank you for asking. But, I have called you for a reason."

"What reason would that be?"

"Are you free today? I would like to take you on a very special date."

Callie raised an eyebrow. "Aren't all our dates special?"

"Of course, but this is the most special one yet!"

"Oh, and why is that?"

He let out of his signature laughs. Callie didn't like the way it made a shudder go down her spine.

"It's a surprise!"

Callie thought for a minute. She didn't have anything else to do, and it was gonna be a while before Sara got up...

"Sure Pap. I'd love to come."

"Great! I shall be over before you know it!"

She smiled. "I look forward to it."

 **A/N: Well, here's my next chapter! I'm pretty nervous about this one, due to the subject matter, so I hope you all enjoyed. Thank so much for everything! Let me know what you think and tell what I need to improve. Until next time!**


	19. Chapter 19

When Papyrus said he'd be over before she knew it, he wasn't lying. A mere five minutes later, he was at her dorm door, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Over one arm, he carried what appeared to be a heavy winter coat. Callie raised an eyebrow at him.

"Pap... what's with the... you know it's almost summer, right?"

He looked down at the garment he carried. "Oh I know! But you can never be too prepared!"

Though Callie knew Papyrus could be a bit quirky at times, this was a little out there. But she decided not to inquire further about it. It probably had something to do with her surprise... though how exactly was beyond her.

The two set off. Papyrus seemed incredibly giddy as he led Callie along, nearly bouncing as he walked. Callie couldn't help but smile at this, even getting rather excited herself as they went further along. His happiness was just... infectious.

At this point the two were walking through town. One could hear music flowing out from nearby restaurants. As they passed each one, Callie would twirl gently to the beat. Part of her wished she'd worn a dress, as it would've made for a more cinematic spin. After a few minutes of this, Papyrus grabbed her hand and spun with her.

Honestly, it was probably the most fun she'd had with him in a few weeks. Between the uncomfortable questions and more uncomfortable feelings, it left little room for actual happiness. So this was a lovely change of pace.

Eventually they left the city limits, Papyrus leading them in a direction that felt painfully familiar. As soon as her feet touched the trail, her blood ran cold.

"P-pap... why are... why are we going towards Mt. Ebott?"

He shot her a mischievous smile. It was both uncharacteristic and somewhat attractive.

"Oh you'll see soon enough. It's somewhere very special."

"You keep saying that." Callie replied, giving a nervous chuckle.

"Because I absolutely believe it! I would never call a place special that wasn't! That would make me a liar of the worst kind!"

"Oh I believe you, Pap, I'm just curious about what this special place is."

He smiled again, only it seemed more sincere than before. "...It's somewhere I spent a lot of time."

After that, the walk up was relatively silent. Callie was deep in deja vu, remembering her original trek up this mountain. And while it made her feel a little sick to remember the reasoning behind it, it was kind of nice to come back now. She was in a much better place in her life. And instead of coming here to die, she was coming here as a part of living. A part of living she had never gotten to experience until now.

They passed the spot where they met, where Callie had somewhat assumed he'd be taking her too, and continued up the mountain. This puzzled her at first, but she didn't say anything. The girl knew that there wasn't much of a point in asking. It was a surprise. He'd show her eventually.

They came to an incline of rock that let to a large plateau. Callie's mouth popped open. While it wasn't exactly the peak of the mountain, it was certainly high up, and provided a wonderful view. She could see the forest below for miles, all lit by the golden afternoon sun.

"This place is so beautiful." Callie said.

"Oh I know! This was our very first view of the surface!"

"This?"

"Indeed!"

His statement tinted this scene in a whole new light. She tried to imagine what that would be like, viewing this after a lifetime of being shrouded in darkness. The sun. The trees. The sounds of the forest.

That would be one hell of an introduction.

"Is this... what you wanted to show me?"

"Nope!"

Callie turned around. Papyrus was looking at her, smiling. He offered out one hand.

"Your surprise has yet to be revealed! Come with me, and I shall make it no longer a surprise!"

Now both curious and awed, Callie took his hand.

The two walked towards a small opening in the side of the mountain, just big enough for a person to fit inside. Papyrus entered first, Callie following close behind. It was at this point that she realized what he was doing. He was taking her to see the Underground.

There was a long corridor, a patch of golden flowers, and another entryway into... a castle?

Callie's eyes widened as they entered an opulent throne room. Asgore's throne room. There were more flowers, growing wildly around the stone floor. Everything was beautifully lit, but the illumination only served to showcase the dust that covered everything.

They continued on, through the golden corridor and into an elevator, and through the elevator to a whole different section of this world. The temperature seemed to spike up, and everything seemed to have an air of... commercialization? Yeah, yeah that worked. After a while they came to a hotel, where a large statue of a robot stood in the lobby.

Mettaton's hotel.

She'd heard about this place, about the influence Mettaton had over the Underground. Callie imagined this place being filled with monsters, all bustling about and buying merchandise. Now it was just an abandoned venue.

The temperature continued to rise as they ventured further. There were several narrow walkways over what seemed to be... lava. It unnerved Callie, and she clung tight to Papyrus.

They eventually came to what could only be Alphys's lab. It was a sterile white building among all of the oranges and reds this environment had to offer. While they couldn't get inside, simply walking around the building was enough to send a chill down Callie's spine.

All these places.

All these people.

These used to be homes for a whole other race of beings, beings her species had put here. A race that only had the hope of escape to keep them going. It was genuinely chilling to think about. And seeing these places empty and deserted just added a whole level of eeriness to everything.

Papyrus led her to an abandoned river boat, still floating by a dock.

"This is a shortcut to your surprise!" He said, grabbing her hand again.

The two hopped on and floated along the river for a short while. As they pressed forward, things got progressively... cooler. At first, of course, this was a relief. The sweltering heat of their previous location was nearly unbearable. But soon it went from pleasantly cool to uncomfortably chilled. Callie found herself wrapping her arms around herself.

Finally they stopped. Papyrus got out first, then lent a hand in helping Callie up. Such a gentleman.

The distinct crunch of feet on snow told Callie all she needed to know about their new surroundings. As soon as she got her bearings, Papyrus offered her the coat.

"I didn't want yet another element to harm you, so I brought this."

Callie chuckled, sliding the heavy garment over her thin T-shirt.

"Thanks Pap. I really appreciate it."

"Of course, Callie. Now come, we're not far now!"

Once again leading the way, Papyrus escorted Callie through a rather charming snow village. There was a library, what appeared to be a Christmas tree, and even a little restaurant. Despite the cold, and that same sense of eerie emptiness, Callie found that she liked this place the best.

Finally, Papyrus stopped in front of a tall house. Christmas lights decorated the wooden exterior, as did the small piles of snow that graced the roof. Honestly, Callie adored it immediately. There was a delightful, homey charm about it that she loved.

"Here's your surprise!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"A... a house?" Wait was he...

"Not just any house, no no no. It's a very great and special house. Mostly because I lived in it."

This was... this was where Papyrus lived before he met her. This was where he grew up. Callie's hand flew to her mouth in shock.

"Well, now that you've seen the outside, I should give you a tour of the inside."

He walked up to the door and pulled out a key. A very old fashioned, ancient key, but still a key. It did the job and opened up the now long-abandoned house. Papyrus gestured her to come inside. Almost in a trance, Callie walked up the creaking steps of the porch and stepped inside.

"So this... this is your home?"

"Yes indeed! I lived here all my life when I was Underground. I wanted to show you, bring you here as a surprise! A brilliant idea, wouldn't you say so?"

Callie didn't respond. She was too busy taking everything around her. The old couch, the television, the mysterious book on the table, the kitchen smelling of rotten spaghetti...

This was his home. Papyrus's home. And he wanted her to see it.

"It... was a good a surprise, right?" The man in question asked.

This snapped her out of her daze. Papyrus, while maintaining a proud stance, looked rather nervous. His teeth were grit, his hands clenched into fists. She walked over and wrapped her arms around him.

"It's wonderful." She said. "It's absolutely wonderful."

 **A/N: This chapter was longer than the last few, and I'm happy with it! Anyway, I really hope you all enjoyed. I'm so excited, not only for this chapter, but for next chapter too! Boy do I have plans! Thank you all so much for all the wonderful feedback. It really helps me know where I stand. And if the update schedule gets a little erratic, I apologize in advance. Just started college and things are hectic here! Well, see you all next time!**


	20. Chapter 20

It didn't take long for the dark and abandoned home to become bright and warm again. Though nobody had lived here for many months now, the electricity and heat still worked. This, Papyrus explained, was because the Underground was powered by an independent, geo-energy power source called "the core". And even though everyone had left, the core was still running.

As he ran around turning lights on, Callie began to get the full picture of the house. Everything was covered in a thin layer of frost, giving the interior a slight shimmer. Beautiful, really, if still a testament to how long this place had been left unattended. The girl strolled through the living room and into the kitchen. It stank to high heaven of old food and older garbage, but she still wanted to explore it. There was a pie tin sitting on the counter top, a crumpled recipe laying beside it. She grabbed the paper, straightening it out.

Cinnamon-Butterscotch.

That was... Toriel's recipe. This puzzled her for a moment. Papyrus didn't bake. He could cook, sure, but he never showed any interest in pastries. So why would he ask for her recipe? Maybe... oh.

Oh.

Callie smiled. Sans. Sans asked her. The girl found that rather sweet.

She set the recipe back down. Her eyes drifted around the tiny room, with its tile floor and faux-marble counters. It was almost strange to think that Sans and Papyrus had made their lives down here. That all the monsters had. Callie wondered what such a life could've been like. She imagined Papyrus in this small, stuffy kitchen, concentrating on a new sauce recipe or vigorously stirring noodles. Meanwhile, Sans would nap on the old couch in the living room. In a way... it was actually quite difficult to think about.

A part of her couldn't imagine that, these two going about life in such a frigid, dark place. No sunlight filtering in through the windows. No moonlight, either. No wide world to wander. Just... this.

"Callie!" Papyrus called.

Her head snapped up. "Yes?"

"Come upstairs, I want to show you something!"

"Coming!" The girl replied, exiting the kitchen.

Callie took a quick glimpse around the living room, catching a wayward sock out of the corner of her eye. Most likely Sans', she thought.

It was a quick trip up the stairs. At the top of said stairs, Callie found Papyrus leaning against a door, a door decorated with yellow tape and a stop sign.

"Great, you're here! Now, I'm going to show you something very special."

He opened the door.

"Come in."

Without even a second thought, she did so. And though Callie wasn't sure what she expected, this was certainly not it.

This was without a doubt the bedroom of a child. Right next to her, Callie noticed a cherry red race-car bed, its sheets still made since its last use. Underneath her was a large rug bordered with flames. In the back corner of the room was a desk littered with action figures and a pirate flag hanging from the wall. Honestly, if she'd been ten, this would've been a dream.

Her eyes fell upon the bookshelf. This... is where it became interesting. Though there were many books one might find in a child's collection, there were many more suited for someone... her age. Textbooks, dating tips, and... and... puzzle construction.

"Papyrus... was this... your room?"

She turned around. He had closed the door, and was sitting on the bed.

"It sure was! I had this room since... well... since I was born, I suppose."

His hands ran over the sheets.

"I missed this bed."

Callie walked over to where he was, taking a spot beside him. The mattress put up no resistance to her weight.

"Comfy."

"I know. It was excellent for dreaming."

Silence filled the room for a minute. Callie continued scanning the room. She hadn't noticed before, but there was a computer in the furthest corner, right next to a window. The window was completely iced over. Callie wondered if it had been that way when he lived here. Maybe not, but the idea still stuck in her mind. It wasn't pleasant.

"Ah, I see you've taken notice of my computer!"

Papyrus stood up and walked over to the device.

"I used to be quite popular on Undernet!"

The girl smiled.

"Oh?"

This was the first time she'd really get some details about Papyrus's life Underground. She'd been a little nervous about asking, but was quite curious.

"Yes! I was only twelve followers away from a double-digit follower account."

Her smile faltered.

"...Oh?"

"...Yes! B-but really, I didn't have much time for online activities. I was too busy training with Undyne most of the time! I needed to be in top shape if I was going to be in the Royal Guard!"

"I thought... weren't you already in the Royal Guard?"

"Well I was, I was a sentry! I just wanted to be ready for when a human came along. I hoped that by doing that I'd... I'd. ... well, it doesn't matter much now. We're on the surface! And I... I..."

He stopped.

Callie was quiet, waiting for a response.

None came.

Papyrus strolled over to his bookshelf, leaning one arm against the side.

"So... are you enjoying the date so far?"

"... Yes, Pap. I am. It means a lot to me that you'd bring me to your old home."

Callie could almost feel the change in his mood. She wouldn't exactly call it elation or joy... it was more like... relief. His shoulders relaxed and his phalanges fell at his sides. Callie swore she could hear a soft "phew" escape him.

"Really?"

She nodded.

"Excellent! That was exactly what I was aiming for. Another successful date for the Great Papyrus! I don't know how I'll be able to top this!"

The girl couldn't help but remember her conversation with Sans a couple months back. About how Papyrus was insecure, how much he feared failure. Maybe it came from a place of perfectionism, or a need to please. Perhaps it was both. But no matter the reason, it still hurt Callie to know that he had to live with those feelings. It reminded her of herself to a painful degree, and she knew how awful it was.

She sighed. "Pap..."

He turned. She could see that he was tensing up again.

"You don't have to keep... trying to top each date. I just want to spend time with you. That doesn't require anything extravagant or show-stopping. Don't get wrong, I really appreciate the effort, I... it means more to me than you know, but I don't want you getting yourself worked up over it."

She could see his face scrunch up into an unreadable expression. Confusion? Frustration? Worry?

"...Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

He sighed. "...So you still like dating me?"

Callie's eyes widened. "I... I... of course I do. What would make you think I wasn't?"

Papyrus was silent for a minute. The girl waited expectantly for a response.

"...I've noticed that you haven't been enjoying your time with me lately. The flinching away, the wincing, the looking away... I thought maybe... after all the times I've failed you... you thought I was doing a bad job as a boyfriend."

Oh. Oh no. Shit. God, she was such an idiot. Of course he noticed that. Of course trying to play it off wasn't going to work. She should've known this was going to come back to bite her in the ass.

"No, Pap. You're doing a wonderful job. That... it .. it's... it's just..."

Oh God, how was she supposed to explain this? Was she supposed to say it had nothing to do with him? No, that would be plain lying. It had everything to do with him. Was she supposed to tell him the truth? How would he even react to that? How was she even supposed to... to say that?

"I..."

She sighed.

"You know how I'm nervous about asking questions?"

He nodded.

"It's one of those."

Papyrus walked back over to her, taking a seat beside her on the bed.

"Why didn't you say so! Callie, I'm here to answer any question you want."

"...Not this one." She said, lowering her head.

Neither moved for a moment.

Callie heard a soft sigh. Papyrus lifted her face up to meet his.

"Callie, whatever it is, I can answer your question!"

She didn't reply.

"...I promise!" He continued.

Still, she didn't speak. Instead, the girl appeared to be deliberating something.

They were alone now. Completely, totally alone. No bigots were going to come and throw rocks at them. No prying eyes were going to judge. There wasn't another soul for miles. If there was ever a time to ask, it would be now.

But she couldn't even form the question. Something else was taking over her mind. That sweet, light buzz from so long ago. Before they were interrupted.

"Pap..." She whispered.

The girl drew in closer.

They wouldn't be interrupted now.

Hesitantly, Callie closed the gap between them. It was a soft, light kiss at first. No more than what she used to. He immediately responded, bringing his arms around her midsection. Callie wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Her hands roamed a little down his back, landing at the base of his rib-cage. The two stayed like this for a while, not moving. Just... embracing.

Callie had been leaning into Papyrus while they'd been doing this, and after a while that took its tole. The two collapsed onto the bed. And while surprising, it wasn't unpleasant. They moved into a more comfortable position, laying beside one another on the sheets. Callie moved to kiss him again, which he didn't have a problem with. But... something in her wanted to try a new tactic.

While they laid there kissing, Callie opened her mouth, letting their teeth meet and her lips glide. Much to her surprise, he copied this movement, opening and closing his mouth accordingly. It was a strange, awkward action, but none too unpleasant. It still felt relatively innocent.

But, the longer they went on, the more Callie lost herself in the moment of it. She nearly forgot who, or rather, what, she was kissing. After a while, almost without thinking, the girl slipped her tongue between Papyrus's teeth. At the moment it felt right, just the natural progression of things. And when she felt another tongue push against hers, Callie didn't give it a second thought.

When he slipped his tongue into her mouth, the girl felt her eyes roll back. She grabbed a fistful of Papyrus's shirt as she moved into her back, which meant that he was now on top of her. Oh God it was such a nice feeling. Callie spread her legs and wrapped them around his waist. Her hands moved down a little, raking down his ribs.

A heat between her legs began to form, a heat that soon escalated into a pulsating wetness. It was an urgent, near-painful, want. She'd never been touched this much before. It was nice to be desired. To be kissed.

She moved one hand down to his waist, near where his pants were. Callie needed... she wanted...

This was when the realization hit her of what she was doing and what position she was in. Somehow she'd slipped her coat off in the midst of all this, and her T-shirt wasn't doing much to hide what she was feeling. Her legs had untangled themselves from his waist and were now just spread wide on the bed. One hand was gripping the hem of her boyfriend's jeans, while the other was hiking up his shirt to his chest.

And of course there was the fact that Papyrus still had his tongue buried in her mouth. His... tongue.

Wait, _what?_

 **A/N: Here's the next chapter! I hope you guys liked it. And be sure to let me know how I'm doing so I know what to improve! Thank you all for the wonderful feedback!**


	21. Chapter 21

Flustered, shocked, Callie found that she couldn't bring herself to move. The revelation that her boyfriend, the skeleton, had a tongue was only beginning to register in her mind. To her, what was more prevalent was the way her body was reacting to said tongue. Well... to him as a whole.

Catching herself in the act of trying to undress Papyrus was... unnerving, to say the least. Callie's hands had worked without her even thinking about their actions, pulling up his shirt and pulling down his jeans. But she hadn't gotten too far, so that was a relief. Only one hip bone and part of his ribs were visible.

He pushed harder against Callie. Their bodies were close together at this point, so much that if the barrier of clothing wasn't there, he could easily...

But did he... if he had a tongue...?

She found that the thought only made the throbbing between her legs intensify.

Finally, Callie was able to shake herself out of the shock. She pulled back.

Papyrus slipped his tongue out of her mouth. Glancing down, Callie found she couldn't see anything.

"...Y-you... you have a tongue?"

His expression was confused. "Of course I do. How else would I be able to taste?"

"I-I just... I thought you said you didn't have organs?"

He pulled himself onto his knees.

"I did say that. And I wasn't lying. I don't have organs in the same way you do. It's all magic!"

Not in the same way she did? But...

"I- I'm not understanding."

He nodded. "I see, I see. I have inadvertently confused you. That was an error on my part. Allow me to explain. I don't have organs, by all technical terms, but the magic that powers me acts as a supplement!"

"So it's like... invisible organs?"

"Precisely! They can't be seen or touched until I need them. Usually I just make them touchable. It conserves energy and... well... it's just more polite. As far as I know, nobody wants to see a floating stomach every time they eat."

Callie nodded. That was certainly a strange concept, but she could at least make sense of it. It certainly explained a lot. Not seeing food once it was inside of his mouth, and his ability to swallow. His vision. His voice. And now, his tongue.

But... it still didn't answer the question burning on the tip of hers. He could choose what he wanted to be corporeal, but did that entail... well... that? Would he consider it necessary? Did he... did he even know about that?

"Callie, are you well? You're much more pink than usual!"

Oh if only you knew, she thought, glancing down at her still spread legs.

"Yeah Pap, I'm well. I'm just... you're... just a really good kisser."

The grin on his face sent another wave of heat down below.

"I will have to do it more often, then!"

Callie smiled, giving a nervous chuckle.

"Sounds good, Pap."

The girl moved back into a sitting position. Finally, it seemed, the shameful sensations were starting to die down. In order to hide the last of her arousal, Callie pulled her coat back over herself.

"So..." Papyrus began. "...Are you ready to ask your question now?"

Her head snapped up.

"...W-what?"

"Before, you had said that there was something you were afraid to ask. But instead of asking, you kissed me. A clever tactic to distract me, no doubt! But I have not forgotten. I am still ready to answer this mysterious question you have."

Callie felt her whole body reject the question before she could even think of it. Her face reddened, her muscles tensed, and her eyes cast themselves to the floor.

"I..." She sighed. "...I... I don't think that..."

The words just weren't forming. She wasn't sure if she wanted to ask her question. That's what she wanted to say. But Callie was also trying to think of a way to explain why she wasn't sure. One, it was an embarrassing question. A question she didn't even know if he would understand. Two, she feared the answer. If it was yes, then she'd have to ask why the topic interested her in the first place. Well, no matter the answer, that was still important. And then Callie would have to tell him about the thoughts she'd been having. That was a whole case on its own.

Callie wasn't even sure if she wanted to act on those thoughts. Most of it was just curiosity, speculation, combined with her own lack of physical contact. The idea of actually having him... well...

... She was just a ball of uncertainty. The whole topic was terrifying. But Callie knew, without a doubt, that it had to come up.

What would prolonging it really accomplish?

Her mind flashed back to what Sans had said quite a while ago, back in his car. It was going to be uncomfortable no matter which way she sliced it.

"Pap... remember a little while back, when we were talking about humans and monsters?"

"Of course I do. I have a photographic memory for conversations!"

"Well, remember when I... when I said..."

She sighed, lowering her head.

Silence.

Papyrus waited.

Callie didn't speak.

She only sat on the bed, acting as if the floor was suddenly very interesting.

"Callie..." He said.

His tone struck her. Callie had never heard his voice that serious before.

"...I wish you weren't afraid to talk to me."

"Oh Pap ..."

He sighed. "I try really hard to be the best, the greatest boyfriend I can be. But no matter what I do, I never meet up to my own standards."

Callie felt a pang of guilt run through her. The feeling of inadequacy was something she knew far too well. From early childhood, she'd always been passed up by her peers. By teachers. By people in general. Simply because she didn't meet up to their ideas of what a person should be. Because she was different.

And now here she was, making one of the few people who didn't pass her up feel that same inadequacy. Because she was afraid to have an uncomfortable conversation and admit her feelings.

... But what were her feelings?

Now that was question she hadn't asked herself in a long time. Sure, there were the sexual thoughts, but that didn't really account for what her actual emotions were.

At least she didn't think so.

Callie shook herself out of that train of thought. Now was not the time. She needed to just... spit it out.

Say something.

She bit her lip.

Come on, Callie, say something.

She closed her eyes.

 _Say something._

She sighed.

"I'm not good at this stuff. I don't know how to talk about it. I'm sorry. This... it's not that I'm scared to talk to you, I just don't know what I'm doing. This is all new to me."

Both were silent for a moment. Callie decided to continue. If she was going to open up, now was the time to do it.

"I can tell you care a lot about what... what I think of you. And it hurts you when I don't open up. But... the reason I don't is because... well... I care a lot about what you think of me, too. I'm terrified of saying the wrong thing. I..."

Another pause.

"I'm terrified of losing you."

Though it came out rather plainly, as if it was just fact, it felt more like a revelation. It was something she'd been afraid to admit to herself for quite some time. She didn't want to lose him. Not just because he was the only person willing to date her, and breaking up with him could mean loneliness again. It was because losing him meant... well... losing _him._

"... Callie..." He said, softly.

She glanced up at him. His expression was an indescribable mix of emotions.

"I can assure you, that is one thing you will not lose."

"...Thank you."

"And if you're not ready to ask your question, that's okay too! Just remember, I'm always prepared to answer when you are ready to ask!"

She smiled. "Thanks, Pap."

This was a relief. She didn't even have the right words to ask yet. She wasn't even entirely sure what she wanted to ask. Did he want to be with her that way? Did he even know what 'that way' was? Did he even have the equipment to try?

Though it was a topic she needed to bring up, now was not the time. There was a whole other mix of emotions she needed to address first.

... Like why she was even thinking this hard about it. Why she didn't want to lose him. And why a small part of her kept repeating the words "Sara was right" over and over.

 **A.N.: This chapter took a while to write. I debated and debated over how to let it play out, and I came up with this. Hopefully you all liked it. Anyway, thank you all so much for reading and for all the wonderful feedback! Let me know how I'm doing!**


	22. Chapter 22

It had been a long few weeks.

School kept Callie busy enough, helping her feel productive and mentally stimulated. Her friends were taking up most of her free time. This kept her more occupied with conversation and socializing than with anything else. She and Papyrus had gone on a few outings after their conversation within the mountain, but nothing major had happened between them in any way.

Yet.

And this plagued Callie's mind, aching and and embedding itself like a mental kidney stone. She had no idea where they were going. Or where they would end up. But the girl was certain that something was coming. Something had to give.

She could feel it brimming up, but somehow it wasn't ready to boil over and spill itself. Callie knew it wouldn't do any good to try and force it out prematurely, but still... waiting was frustrating. It made everything drag on.

As to what "it" was... she didn't exactly know that either. There were certainly things that they needed to discuss, but first Callie needed to untangle the mess of emotions that was making it so hard to discuss said things. And before _that_ could happen, she needed to discern what those emotions were.

In other words, everything was confusing and her relationship was in a stalemate until something gave. Somehow Callie found herself feeling like a time-bomb.

Ah well.

To take her mind off of that, Callie decided to do something she hadn't been able to do in quite a while.

"So where do you wanna go for lunch?" She asked.

Sara lifted her head up from her binder.

"Uhm... honestly I have no idea. Do you have a preference?"

Callie shook her head. "That's... kind of why I asked you."

"Great." Sara said, letting out a short chuckle. "I'm sorry I can't be of more help."

"Nah. It's not like I'm much help either."

After many weeks of meetings and campaigning and school, Sara finally had some free time. Well, both of them did. Spring break had arrived, and it was a welcome change for the pair. Since there was finally a little flexibility with their schedules, Callie decided to take a day and just catch up with her roommate.

They just had to get past this food debacle first.

Sara sighed. "We could try that deli up the street."

Callie shook her head. "We can't. They don't like Pap and I there."

Of course there wasn't an official ban on the couple or anything. That could prompt a legal battle. It was all just dirty stares and a high chance of people spitting in their food. Nothing tangible, but enough to get the messages across. She was used to that sort of thing by now.

The girl could see Sara visibly clenching her teeth in anger.

"I know, it upsets me too."

"It's just not right."

"I know. But... there's not much we can do right now. You're already working as hard as you can, and progress can sometimes be painfully slow. You just... you have to be patient."

Sara took a deep breath.

"... I know. I know."

Callie bit her lip.

"...Maybe we could just order some pizza and call it an afternoon? Save ourselves the trouble of indecision?"

There was a low chuckle.

"Yeah. Yeah that we can agree on. Cheese okay?"

"I wasn't even going to think about toppings." Callie replied, relieved to hear her laugh. "We'd be here all day."

* * *

The room had gotten rather quiet. At this point, the only sounds were of chewing and the occasional mumble of enjoyment. With everything else that was going on in their lives, both girls seemed to enjoy this moment of peace.

Callie finished her slices, turning her attention back to Sara. She was working on a mouthful of cheese.

"Good?"

Sara gave a thumbs up. After a moment, she swallowed her bite. Callie decided to take this opportunity to spark a conversation.

"So how has your work with Asgore been going?"

For a moment, she swore she could see the hint of a smile on her face, but it quickly dissipated.

"It's been... interesting. We're not making much headway with our campaign, but we kind of expected that. Progress is slow, like you said. Even so, he's been lovely to work with. Very... very sweet."

"Yeah, he is a sweetheart, isn't he? All the monsters seem to be that way."

Sara nodded. "That's why we're fighting so hard for them, right? They're good people."

Callie sighed.

"I know."

Another silence settled over the two of them. It wasn't exactly uncomfortable, or loaded, it was just... unwanted. The girls hadn't talked to one another much in the past few weeks, after all. Surely they could drum up a conversation.

"How are things between you and Pap?"

Any conversation but that one. While Callie appreciated Sara taking interest, at the moment that was the last thing she wanted to talk about. Ah well, it was an inevitable topic at this point.

"... They're good. We're still dealing with everyone's bullshit prejudice, but we're used to that by now."

Sara nodded.

"Say, I forgot to ask, what was that big date thing he took you on a couple weeks ago?"

"Huh?"

"You know, that day when he called you about some 'special date' and I was too tired to really ask..."

Callie nodded. "Oh, oh, that! Sorry, it took me a minute. Um... well, he did something... very sweet. He took me underground to show me his old home."

Sara's eyes widened.

"His old home?"

"Yes."

"Well... what was that like?"

Callie felt a smile spreading. "It was beautiful. He used to live in this snowy village, and it was just... just the coziest place. Very inviting."

"That's incredible!"

"I know. I... it meant so much to me that he took me there. It was... it was just so..." She trailed off.

"Thoughtful?" Sara offered.

Callie furrowed her brow in frustration. "Yes, but... it goes beyond thoughtful. That was such a personal thing to share with me, especially considering the circumstances..."

And yet I can barely ask him a simple question, Callie thought.

Sara nodded. "I understand. Was it difficult for him to go back?"

"Surprisingly... no, actually. He was very excited to show everything to me."

"That's good."

Callie nodded in agreement.

Again, the conversation lulled into silence. This time, however, Callie was actually grateful for it. She really didn't want to talk about that date any more. About her romantic life in general. It was weighing on her mind too much and quite frankly she wanted to forget about it for a little bit.

But it seemed that the topic hadn't died out yet.

"So what happened down there? Did he just give you a tour or did you guys have a winter picnic or...?"

It was obvious that Sara was trying to ward off an awkward silence. Though Callie couldn't blame her for that, it didn't make her situation any easier.

"Mostly the tour part." She replied. "Then when we got to his house we just sort of... hung out for a while."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

For a record third time, it went quiet. Callie sat awkwardly on her bed, pretending her socks were incredibly interesting. After a while, the girl grabbed another slice of pizza. Just to give reason to the silence.

After a seemingly long time, she heard Sara let out a deep sigh.

"Callie, what happened?"

"Hmm?" She asked, through a mouthful of crust.

"What happened between you and him? You've never been this... uncomfortable talking about him before."

Callie finished her bite and looked up at Sara. Her expression was one of deep concern.

"Everything's okay, Sara. We're fine, I promise." She tried to give a reassuring smile.

It didn't work.

"But... something did happen?" Sara asked.

Callie sighed. As usual, Sara saw right through her.

"...Yes."

The dark-haired girl was silent, waiting for Callie to speak up.

"...We made out while we were Underground."

"You... made out?"

"Yeah. He... he can do that. It was nice."

Sara cocked her head to the side. "I feel like there's more to this story."

Callie nodded. She realized that there was really no point in trying to kill this subject. The ball was already rolling, might as well roll with it.

"We also had a conversation. I told him the reason why I was afraid of asking him questions."

Sara was quiet, waiting for said reason.

"Sara, you were right." Callie said. "I'm afraid of losing him."

She braced herself for an "I told you so".

"... What did he say?"

Oh. Well... that wasn't quite what she was expecting.

"He... well, he said that was one thing I wasn't going to lose."

"So what's the problem?"

"...I just... I don't know. Everything is piling up. I'm nervous. I have no idea where this is going. Where we're going. It's been on my mind a lot since that date."

Callie looked down, placing her head between her palms. Before long, she felt the mattress shift beneath her and an arm wrap around her shoulder.

"Hey."

The girl looked up.

"You're over-thinking this." Sara said. "Remember what I said when you guys got together? One-"

"One date at a time." The two spoke simultaneously.

Callie sighed. "I know, I know. But it's been quite a few dates now. I need to start thinking long-term."

"Why do you think that is?"

"Huh?"

"Why do you need to think long-term?"

"Because we... I mean it's been quite a few months now, right?"

Sara nodded. "It has."

"And that's what couples do. They start planning for the future after they've been together a while." Callie explained.

"And what future are you planning for?"

The pale girl shook her head. "I... I don't know. That's the problem."

"So you're saying you can't look into the future?"

"I mean... I mean of course not..."

Sara gave her a pat on the back. "Then don't worry. Don't try and look so far ahead. Take everything one step at a time. The future will come. If you don't know what it is, then there's nothing you can do about it now."

"Well... what the hell CAN I do now? It feels like something is looming over me. Something big. I really want to do something about it."

"Do you know what 'something' is?"

Callie shook her head.

Sara sighed.

"Then try not to worry about that either. Whatever happens, happens."

Callie nodded.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

Suddenly, there was a buzzing sound emanating from Callie's pocket. It wasn't difficult to figure out who it was that was texting.

"Is that him?"

"Yes. He's asking about taking me to dinner."

Sara placed a hand on Callie's shoulder.

"One date at a time?"

The girl let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, and relaxed the muscles she didn't know were tense.

"One date at a time."

 **A/N: Hey guys! I'm really sorry it's been so long! I've been really busy with school and work, and I needed to get my bearings. Anyway, I hope you all liked this one! I figured I'd make a calmer chapter after the events of the last three. And, of course, before the events of the coming chapters. (Insert evil laugh). Thank you all so much for your patience and for all the wonderful feedback!**


	23. Chapter 23

She didn't quite know what to make of this. For the first time, in a seemingly long time, Papyrus hadn't come to pick her up or walk with her to their destination. It didn't... well, bother her, but it certainly seemed out of the norm. Usually he was insistent on walking with Callie to their date. Though it was partly out of courtesy, the girl knew that he also feared another incident.

But this time, he just told her to meet him at the Italian restaurant, where they'd had their first date. Callie appreciated the sentiment, but... ah.

The girl stopped walking to take a deep breath.

Stop over-thinking it, Cal.

Just meet him. Have a good time. Relax for one damn minute.

She began moving again.

Callie took this time to take in her surroundings. The sky was rather lovely, just starting to fade from sunset pink to evening. A light breeze was carrying flower petals over the girl's head. A few even found their way into her hair. It was quite a tranquil scene. For a while, in fact, Callie nearly forgot about her strange worries and stranger desires and just enjoyed her walk.

Town was far from quiet at this time of night. It was spring break, after all. Every bar and restaurant was flooded with college students, a practical sea of fresh-faced adults. Callie found herself wondering how in the hell Papyrus was able to get them a spot at the Italian place at a time like this. Unless he reserved a table in advance...?

Cal, stop it. You'll find out when you get there, she told herself.

As usual, there were a few wayward glances in her direction. At this point, she couldn't tell if it was because of her appearance or because of her association with monsters. Well... with one in particular. At this point she supposed it didn't really matter. Gawking was still gawking. She was a freak.

She was different.

Oh God.

Callie stopped in her tracks.

Just as she suspected, the restaurant was packed. Hell, even more packed than usual. Her eyes scanned the place, both inside and out, for an available table. She couldn't see one.

"Excuse me, Miss?" A rather exasperated voice called.

Callie turned to see a small hostess, looking a tad disheveled from the chaos and wearing a forced smile.

"Y-yes...?"

"Are you here for dinner? There's about a fourty-five minute wait, so..."

"I uh... I think my boyfriend made a reservation..."

Callie's eyes searched frantically for any sign of said boyfriend. It worried her when she couldn't find him. Finding him shouldn't be that difficult a task, the man didn't exactly blend into a crowd.

"Name?'

"Huh?"

"Name..?"

"O-Oh! Sorry. Um... his name is Papyrus."

Her eyes seemed to immediately light up.

"Oh! Oh, okay. Is your name Callie?"

"Yes, that's me."

The hostess beckoned her over to the door. "Right this way, ma'am."

Callie was led through a bustling crowd of people, most of whom, as usual, were staring at her. Or glaring at her. Either way it was the norm. They made their way through the restaurant. Table after table was occupied by various patrons, conversing and eating and laughing. But... still no Papyrus.

One table, however, was empty. It was one of those tiny things, a made-for-two kind of table tucked away in a somewhat private nook. On top of said table was a note card that read "reserved". The hostess set the menus down.

"Here you are, ma'am. Your server should be over in a moment."

"O-oh! Thank you very much!" Callie said, taking a seat.

Did... Did Papyrus really reserve a table for the two of them? A... a private table? How did he even... did the owners really honor his request? It seemed almost ludicrous. Though restaurants dutifully served most monsters, it didn't seem in the realm of possibility that they'd give them this kind of privilege, especially on such a busy night!

He.. oh no... he had to pay quite a bit for this, didn't he? There was no other way...

Callie put her face in her hands. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve any of this.

"Good evening! What can I get such a lovely young lady, yourself I mean, to drink?"

The girl froze. Her eyes slowly drifted upwards. She was met with a painfully recognizable face, in front of which was a small notepad.

"P..Pap?"

"I am sorry, ma'am! I am not an item on the drink menu. Though for you I may make an exception..."

Callie stood up to get a better look at her boyfriend. He was dressed rather sharply, black trousers and a matching bow-tie paired with a white button-up and apron.

"What are you... why are dressed like that?"

The answer, of course, was obvious. Callie just couldn't quite form the word "how."

"Why I work here, of course! I just got the job today, and I wanted to share my first shift with you."

"I... I... That's amazing! I'm so happy for you!"

"Thank you! I know, it's not quite a chef's position, but it's a start! There is always room for promotion, right?"

Callie nodded, trying to overcome her dumbfounded state of mind.

"So, what can I get you to drink?" He asked, once again. "I have other customers waiting, and I can't leave them in such a way!"

"Uh... just... a coke is fine. Cherry."

He scribbled that down.

"Excellent! I shall be back soon to take your order!"

And before she could say anything else, he scurried off.

Callie plopped back down in her seat. This was... this was a whole new bit of information to process. Papyrus was working here. Papyrus. Was working. Here.

He'd started... today? But... he never mentioned anything about this. Was this supposed to be another surprise? Well if so, then he certainly accomplished his mission.

Soon there was a large glass of coke sitting in front of her, a single cherry floating on top. She looked back up.

"And what would you like to eat tonight?"

"Uh... Spaghetti."

"Ooh! Excellent choice, ma'am! Shall I take your menu?"

Callie handed it up to him.

"Thank you."

Before he left again, Callie spoke up.

"Say, uh, P-Pap?"

"Yes?"

"Uh... how did... how did you get this job? Did something... you never said anything..."

"No time to explain now, Callie! I shall be back with your food very soon."

Once again, he was out of sight.

Callie sat motionless for a moment before turning around. Her eyes tried to follow Papyrus as he attended to other customers. Part of her, a large part, worried about how they would treat him. Would they be rude? Would they bully him? Would they straight up refuse to eat what he'd served them? She felt her muscles tense up as she watched.

But... they didn't.

Instead of looking disgusted or horrified, they looked... pleased. Fascinated, really. One man even stood up to take a picture with him.

He was like an attraction.

Callie didn't know how to feel about that.

Numbly, she reached for her drink. The cold liquid was a help, something to ground her in this strange situation. Before she knew it, Callie had emptied the glass. The cherry, once floating, was now resting on a block of ice. Just as Callie was about to reach in and grab it, a familiar hand grabbed the cup.

"I'll take that for you!" Papyrus said. "I won't stand for a customer to be sitting here with an empty glass. But... Unfortunately we ran out of cherries. Is regular alright?"

"I... yes, Pap. Thank you." She said.

"You're welcome, madam! And your spaghetti should be out shortly!"

Callie smiled a bit. She had to admit, he was doing very well. Very efficient. Well, Pap always was a perfectionist, so it would make sense. And he was always a people-pleaser. This... this was a good fit for if he was happy, she was happy for him.

Callie took a deep breath.

Relax. Everything is okay. Better than okay, actually. This was... this was great! It was a huge improvement, a step in the right direction for monster was a night to celebrate.

She'd have to congratulate him on the job! Maybe next time she could take him out. Or maybe she could try cooking for him? It had never really been a strong suit of hers, but it was worth as a shot.

This time, now that she could actually focus, Callie saw Papyrus coming. As he approached, she smiled wider.

He brought back a fresh coke and her spaghetti. Looking down, she saw the sauce was in the shape of a heart.

"Aww, Pap, this is so sweet."

"Sweet? Spaghetti is not meant to be sweet!"

She giggled. "The heart, I mean."

"Oh yes, that! Thank you! I'm very glad you appreciate the gesture."

"You put a lot of... heart... into it."

"Why yes, I..." He trailed off.

Callie snickered.

"No matter where I go, bad puns follow me. What ever did I do to deserve such a punishment?"

The girl stood up, wrapping her arms around him.

"Nothing, Pap."

God, she was so happy. This was going to be great. Now that he had a job, Callie was sure he'd be much happier. And hey, it really was a step towards his career goal.

"You're great." She said. Callie sighed, leaning into his shoulder. He returned the hug.

"... I hate to let you go, Callie, but I must get back to work."

"Alright." She spoke into his shoulder. "Good luck, Pap. I love you."

The words slipped from her mouth effortlessly, seemingly without hesitation. But the moment they were out, Callie realized what she'd just said.

Oh God.

She pulled away. The first thing that came into focus was the widest, brightest smile Callie had ever seen. It actually shocked her a bit.

"Ah, so you finally reveal your ultimate feelings!"

The girl could barely get the words out. "I... I uh..."

"Well, I suppose it is time I reveal mine, as well." He let go of her.

Papyrus put a hand up to his mouth, clearing the throat he didn't have. Callie still couldn't fully process what had come out of her mouth.

"I... The Great Papyrus... am in love with you, as well. I am so happy to hear that you reciprocate my feelings! This calls for a celebration!"

He looked around. "Later, of course! For now I must get back to work!"

After a quick kiss on the cheek, he walked off.

Callie once again plopped back down in her seat.

Oh God.

Oh God.

Oh God.

She really... she really said that. She said it. It just came out. It felt automatic, like saying it to a family member before a goodbye.

"I love you." She said again.

Callie tried to get the feel of those words, tried to grasp them. Though really, she supposed it didn't matter, attempting to analyze them. It was already said. What could she do now, take them back? And he'd already... wait.

He...

Said he was in love with her.

Papyrus was in love with her.

Oh God.

He loved her. And from the sound of things, it seemed as if he'd been waiting to tell her that for a while. Perhaps he was waiting until she was comfortable saying it.

Well, she said it.

Oh boy, had she said it.

Callie took a bite of her spaghetti.

Well... shit.

Now she really had some feelings to face.

 **A/N: Well, it's near Halloween, so I thought I'd share something scary with you all. And what's scarier than... emotional vulnerability?! OoOoooOooh.**

 **Anyways, hope you all enjoyed! Thank you so much for your patience and all the wonderful feedback! Let me know what you all think! Happy Halloween!**


	24. Chapter 24

"So yeah... that's the whole story." Callie explained.

The girl bit her lip.

"...What do you think I should do?'

There was silence on the other end of the line for a long time. Callie tapped her foot against the tile floor.

"... Cal?"

"...Yeah?"

"Just enjoy your date."

The girl felt her shoulders slump. "...I... Is that... I-I don't know..."

"You have to stop over-thinking everything, Cal. So you said it. It's out in the open. Don't waste your date analyzing every little thing about it. Let the night flow. Have a good time."

Though it was a rather pointless gesture, Callie nodded.

"...Okay. Okay. You... you're right. But... shouldn't I at least think about it a little? It's kind of a big thing to say to someone. And if I'm not sure if I mean it, that's... well... it's a big deal."

Sara sighed. "And do you think worrying about it is gonna help you figure out your feelings?"

She didn't have a response.

"...You have to allow yourself to feel before you figure out what you're feeling."

Callie sighed. "...Alright. I... Thank you, Sara. Sorry to bother you with this."

"Nah, it's no problem, Cal. Now go out there and feel the love!"

The girl let out a quick snort of laughter before hanging up. With a sigh, Callie put her phone back in her purse and leaned against the bathroom wall.

Okay.

Okay.

Deep breaths. It's okay. This... this wasn't a bad thing. At least she knew where Papyrus stood, even if she wasn't quite sure where she did. And honestly, Sara was right. The only way to figure out her feelings is if she felt them. If she stopped being afraid of feeling. There was no fear of his rejecting her. The rest of the world already knew about their relationship and hated them for it . What was the girl afraid of?

Callie, for once, let your damn guard down.

After a deep, shaking breath, the young woman walked out and returned to her table. Papyrus was already standing there, holding a platter above his head.

"Ah, there you are!"

Callie greeted him with a smile. "Hey Pap. Sorry, had to use the bathroom."

"There is no need to apologize for that!" He exclaimed.

Papyrus lowered the platter. On it was a lovely piece of cheesecake, drizzled with caramel sauce and topped with a cluster of chocolate shavings.

"Compliments of your server." He winked.

Callie felt the heat rise in her cheeks. Papyrus set the plate down before picking up her mostly eaten spaghetti.

"I will be back to check on you in a bit, my dear."

"Okay... honey." She decided to try out a term of endearment.

It seemed to please him. Papyrus seemed to bounce with joy as he walked away.

The girls eyes turned back to the cheesecake. She was pretty full from dinner, but this was a sweet gesture from Pap. Wait a minute...

Callie was suddenly snickering to herself.

Oh yeah, that was definitely a gushy name to use next time the mood struck.

This was... this was nice. Just a nice evening out, celebrating her boyfriend's new job. It sounded so deceptively normal. For all intensive purposes, it WAS normal. It was only physical appearance that set their situation apart from that of any other couple.

Now just enjoy your damn cheesecake.

* * *

Ten minutes and a clean plate later, Papyrus returned.

"How was your desert, ma'am?"

The girl smiled, perhaps a bit too widely. "It was amazing! My compliments to the chef... and to you for bringing it to me."

"It was my pleasure, ma'am. May I take your plate?"

She handed it to him.

"Thank you, ma'am. I shall come back in just a few minutes!"

"Oh yeah, for the bill, right? I'll be sure to leave an excellent tip."

Papyrus shook his head. "No no, I already paid it! You see, I used some of my first paycheck for this dinner! I even added the tip."

Callie blinked in surprise.

"You... you used some of your first paycheck... for this?"

He gave a vigorous nod.

The girl stood up and threw her arms around him.

"Thank you, Pap. You're... you're a wonderful guy."

My wonderful guy, she thought. My Pap.

"I am rather great, aren't I?"

Callie chuckled into his shoulder. "Yes, yes you are."

The girl let go.

"Anyways, I will be back soon. My shift is over soon, and I have one more thing in store for you!"

She titled her head. "Oh?"

"Yes! It is a little surprise I have planned for you." He lookLned over his shoulder. "I'll see you in just a few minutes!"

He turned to leave.

"Okay! I'll see you soon..." Should she try out the pet name? Or would it be... ah screw it, just go for it Cal. "See you soon, sugar skull!"

Callie swore she saw a grin form on his face as he walked away. She had to admit, it was a pretty satisfying thing to see.

* * *

"So... what's this surprise?"

She was incredibly curious. It was nearly eleven, and the place was closing down for the night. Papyrus was leading her to the main dining area of the restaurant. It was, as expected, completely empty. There was a space in the middle that was devoid of any tables, revealing only a patch of hardwood.

Callie looked to her boyfriend. He seemed pleased with himself.

"What's all this?"

He brought her to that patch of hardwood.

"Well, from what I know of dating, it is customary at one point or another to dance with your date! I figured this would be a perfect time for such an important step!"

She didn't have any response at first. The notion was sweet, and very much up his ally, but the girl couldn't help but wonder why the restaurant was allowing him to do this. He was a new employee, not someone that has a lot of pull. And... well... he was a monster. As much as Callie hated to factor that into the equation, she didn't have much of a choice. The bias against monsters was undeniable. With all of that in mind, she couldn't help but wonder... did he... did he pay them for this? Was he giving more than just "some" of his paycheck to give her a romantic evening? Was...

No.

No.

Callie, for the love of God, stop doing this to yourself. You're having a wonderful time out, your boyfriend has a new job, and you're about to dance. You have to stop overanalyzing this. It's okay. Everything is okay. Relax.

For God's sake, just enjoy yourself for once.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of music. It was a lovely, soft instrumental, accompanied by a gentle Italian singer. Papyrus was offering out his hand.

She took a deep breath.

"Thank you."

She grabbed it.

And with that, the two began to dance. At first it was a gentle sway, as it seemed neither were sure of what they were doing. Callie was wearing heels and worried about stepping on her boyfriend's feet, so she kept each step hesitant. Papyrus didn't seem to know what to do with his hands. One would land on her hip, but then immediately retract, while the other couldn't make a commitment on how tight to grip Callie's hand. Both wore nervous smiles on their faces.

Outside, a couple of gawking students were looking in.

"Freak!" Someone called.

The song went on, the sound becoming a little more intense.

Papyrus stepped away, still gripping Callie's hand, and guided her in a spin. The girl watched as the dim lights from the room became a dazzling circle of gold. She let out a joyful laugh.

He spun her back in. Callie lost her balance for a moment and had to lean into Papyrus's chest to keep from falling over. She felt him squeeze her, keeping her there in a hug for a bit. She sighed into his shirt.

"Nasty whore!" Another shouted. Someone was pounding on the glass.

The music was still going.

Still in this position, they began to sway again. Callie pressed her ear against his ribs, wondering if he had a heartbeat for her to hear. Even if there wasn't one, that was alright too. Papyrus surprised her by wrapping his hand around her back and dipping her. Callie felt her necklace slide up to her chin.

Once again, she just let out a laugh. With her head thrown back, she could see the angry people outside of the restaurant. Some were taking pictures with their phones, some were shouting, and some were just throwing them disgusting looks. It was... exactly what she was used to.

Her eyes moved back to her boyfriend. He was just looking at her, smiling. The low lighting, while giving the background a lovely glow, served to host many shadows that played out over his face. These shadows made his grin look a little more playful, and his eyes somehow even darker. That combined with the suit was... rather attractive.

"Slut!"

He helped her stand upright. The song ended.

Callie had to blink several times before getting her bearings.

"Wowie!" Papyrus said. "My first dance! And it went beautifully, as I knew it would. Because I am a master at dancing!"

The girl chuckled.

The crowd outside was still there, but they were starting to lose interest. Most had walked away.

Papyrus walked Callie outside.

"Thank you so much, Pap. This... you're just... thank you."

"No need to thank me, Callie. I promised to make you happy, didn't I?"

It took Callie a moment to remember what he was talking about. It seemed so long ago... when he'd found her. When she had dinner with him for the first time. When he threw her a party just to help get her out of her depression.

And help her he did.

"...You did. Thank you."

She gave him a quick kiss.

"Well, this has been a lovely date. I'm so glad it met your standards!"

"It certainly has."

He smiled. "But all lovely things must come to an end. I suppose you'll want to be getting home now."

Callie didn't reply immediately. Her eyes seemed to enjoy scanning Papyrus up and down too much, taking in his attire and how nice it looked on him. An image came to her of him unbuttoning that shirt, slowly, all the way down to the bottom. Almost by instinct, she began to push it away. But...

"Callie?" He said, his voice a tad concerned.

She looked at his face again.

"What... what if... I don't want to go home just yet?"

"Then I would be happy to help you come to an alternative. Just name the place!"

She sighed.

"How about your home, instead?"

"Are you sure? It's not nearly as romantic or interesting there!"

"...Yes." She said. "Pap..."

"Yes, Callie?"

The girl was quiet for a minute. She bit her lip.

"Are you alright?"

Come on, Callie. It was now or never.

"...I'm ready to ask my question."

 **A/N: Welp, it's almost time, folks! You know what's coming next. Anyways, thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for all of your support and all the wonderful feedback!**


	25. Chapter 25

The walk back home had been quiet. Mostly because Callie had been afraid to start this conversation where any other person could hear them. Papyrus, the sweet guy he was, obliged. But now they were back in his apartment.

The lights were low.

Sans was out for the night.

It was just the two of them, sitting on the living room couch. It was time to talk about this.

"So... so uhm..." Callie began. She rubbed the back of her neck.

Papyrus waited patiently for her say something.

There was a pause.

"O-okay, let me start again. You know... okay. A while back, we had that conversation about humans and monsters."

"I remember!" He said. "I remember both the original conversation and the time you brought the conversation up in order to ask me this question the first time!"

"R-right. Well... there was a specific part of that conversation that pertains to this one."

Okay, Callie. It was time to ask. Just... just be calm.

"Remember when you asked how humans were made?"

"I do!"

"Well, I... do you know if... well... how are monsters made?"

The girl furrowed her brow, scolding herself. That was a really weak way of asking the real question.

"...Is that... the question you were afraid to ask?' Papyrus asked.

Callie could tell he was incredulous. Though he didn't say it, it was quite obvious that he knew this wasn't what was really on her mind.

She sighed. "...No. But it leads up to it."

He placed his hand over hers.

"Callie, whatever your question is... you don't have to hide it. Just ask!"

"It's not that easy, Pap." She replied. "It's... it's a very personal question. I need to build up to it properly."

He nodded.

"Okay. Um... I'll reword it. Do monsters do what humans do? To have children?"

There was a pause again, longer this time. Papyrus seemed to be in deep thought.

"I don't quite know, actually. You see, there are many kinds of monsters, and they all work very differently!"

"...Oh."

Well, that got her nowhere.

"So what question was that building up to?" Papyrus asked.

"Uh..." Crap. How was she going to ask this now?

"Do... do... can you..."

Deep breath.

"Do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Do what humans do?"

He cocked his head to the side. "...Callie..."

She bit her lip.

"Yeah?'

Papyrus squeezed her hands tightly.

"Are you saying you would like to have a baby with me?"

Callie felt every muscle in her body jump at the statement.

"No!" She blurted.

They hadn't even... she wasn't... could they even...?

She looked back up at her boyfriend. The look on his face was confused. Maybe even a little hurt..

"I-I mean not exactly. I'm just not ready for a baby.."

"Then why do you want to know so much?"

"Because..." She began. "I want... I need to..."

Callie was struggling to put together the words. How could she say what she was thinking? Saying it sounded... it felt... somehow wrong. And there didn't seem to be a way to word it that felt right. All this asking and tip-toeing didn't help.

But she needed to talk about it.

She needed to be open about this.

Nothing was going to get better until she did.

The girl came to a decision.

"Pap..." She said.

Papyrus turned his eyes toward her. She took her hands out from under his and moved them to her dress. It was a lovely pink thing that buttoned down the front.

"I...I'll just show you."

With a deep breath, Callie undid the top button.

And the second.

And the third.

Papyrus grabbed her hands as they were reaching for the fourth. She looked up at him.

"Would you prefer that I do that for you?"

Callie's eyes widened. She wasn't sure what struck her more; the question itself or the tone he asked it in. His usual bubbly enthusiasm was infused with something rather playful... mischievous.

"I... uh... y-yeah. Sure." The girl struggled to process what was happening. Did he really catch on that quickly? But...did that mean he already knew about this? But then why was he...

His fingers moved quickly, undoing the last four buttons with ease. Before Callie even realized it, the dress was falling in a heap at her hips.

His hands then moved to the top button of his own shirt.

"Should I do this part or would you like to?''

"Uh... I-I... I don't... you can. If you want."

"Gladly!"

He pulled off his bow tie and got down a couple buttons, but suddenly stopped. A look of confusion crossed his features.

"...Is... something wrong?"

"I can't remember if it's more attractive to undress quickly or slowly."

"...Remember?"

Wait. Had he... done this before? No, that was... or was it...

"From what those videos told me! I can't remember how to "be sexy for my girl"."

"V-videos? Like, online?"

"Yes, those are the ones! Have you seen them too?"

"I uh... no. But I know they're out there. I well... I learned about that kind of stuff... elsewhere."

By that, of course, she meant from poorly executed sex-ed classes and her parents (ironically much better teachers). All the nuances and specifics came from curious observation. And sex scenes.

"Excellent! Well, do you know how I can be sexy for you?"

Though his understanding was a little off, the question itself was surprisingly appropriate. She looked down at his half unbuttoned shirt and abandoned bow tie.

"I think you're doing a pretty good job so far. Just... keep doing what you're doing."

"Alrighty! That I can do."

He kept up the quick pace from before and got the shirt unbuttoned all the way. It now hung loosely from his frame, casting dark shadows over his chest. A playful smile spread across his face.

"Shall I... take something else off?"

Holy shit.

Callie crossed her legs.

"Uh... I... I mean... y-yeah."

He leaned in a little. "...Or maybe I should take something off of you next?"

The girl could feel a shudder go down her spine. Partly in excitement, partly in fear. If he were to take something else off of her now, he was going to see some very private somethings.

Well, the ball was already rolling. She was sitting here in her bra and panties. He was nearly shirtless. If Callie wanted to go through with this, now was the time to do so.

She grabbed his hands and placed them where her bra strap was.

"Yes, please."

God she hoped that sounded less shaky than she felt.

He obliged. Callie closed her eyes as Papyrus undid the strap and slid the garment off of her.

It went quiet for a seemingly long time.

Neither moved.

Callie popped one eye open to see what was going on. Papyrus was staring intently at the newly exposed skin, his hands still holding the bra.

"Uh... Pap...? Are you okay?"

He took a moment to respond.

"... Wowie! You said nobody wanted to see you like this?"

"I... yeah."

"Well they're certainly missing out!"

Callie said nothing, but leaned up to kiss him.

Papyrus reciprocated immediately. It wasn't long before he'd pulled her onto his lap, his hands gripping tightly at her hips. Callie, meanwhile, had slid his shirt all the way off and had begun to kiss the bones of his neck.

Every now and again this kissing caused him to moan a little. To grip her a little tighter. Callie found that she enjoyed that reaction. So her mouth began to move south. Down his clavicles, across his chest... Callie slid off his lap in order to reach her goals. When she got to the bottom of his ribs, it dawned on her what position she was in.

The girl was kneeling between his legs, lips puckered.

He seemed to realize this too.

"Uh... Callie... is there a particular reason you're down there?"

Callie felt her cheeks flood with heat.

"I... I... uh..."

She bit her lip. Part of her... wanted to try. The idea sent a rush of heat between her legs. But the question was... could she? And more importantly, would he be okay with it?

She sighed. Well, if she was going to get an answer to her question...

"I... I was going to... y-you know..."

He cocked his head to the side.

"... Unbuckle your pants."

You wuss.

"Ah! Well, if you would prefer to do it, be my guest!"

"...A-are you sure?"

"Yes, of course! Go right ahead."

"O-okay."

With a deep breath, Callie reached towards his belt buckle.

Okay.

Okay.

You can do this.

"Callie, are you alright?" Papyrus asked.

This caught her off guard. "Y-yeah, why?"

He looked down at her. "You're shaking all over. Are you cold?"

The girl sighed. Her hands fell back at her sides.

"No. I'm just... nervous. I've never done this before, Pap. And I don't even know... I don't know what you can do."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... can you do this with me? What we're about to do? Since you're a monster and I'm a human? Are we compatible like this?"

It went quiet again.

Hiding her shame, Callie cast her eyes downwards towards her breasts. They were small, pale things. Somehow paler than the rest of her. Despite the lack of activity at the moment, her peaks were still at attention.

Of course they were.

"This was your question, wasn't it?"

Callie looked up. "Huh?"

"You want to know if we're physically compatible. That's what you meant by "doing what a human can do."

The girl buried her face in his pant leg.

"Yes..." She mumbled.

"Have you...is this what's been bothering you?"

"Yes..."

"And you've been too embarrassed to ask?"

"Definitely..."

Papyrus took a hold of Callie's chin and lifted it to meet his gaze. It was that same mischievous look from earlier, with just a touch of his usual kind smile mixed in.

"I can gladly answer that for you."

Papyrus offered out his hand. Callie took it. He stood up, helping the girl to her feet as he did so. Once on her feet, the skeleton scooped Callie up, bridal style.

"I, The Great Papyrus, have many abilities! Incredible strength, cunning, and fighting strategies! I can do just about anything I set my mind to!"

The two began making their way towards the bedroom.

"And that, dear Callie, includes you."

 **A.N: Here we go everyone! You guys are in for quite a "ride" next chapter! (God even I groaned at that one). Jeez, this took me a while to write. With scenes like this, it's kind of hard to keep everyone in character. I hope I did alright with that! Anyways, thank you all so much for sticking with me and for all the wonderful feedback!**


	26. Chapter 26

Oh.

 _Oh._

 _Oh God._

That... oh...

Not that. Not there. It shouldn't... it wasn't supposed to... This wasn't right...

"Are you alright, Callie?" Papyrus asked.

The girl in question nodded. Her eyes were squeezed completely shut and covered by a mess of hair, while her bottom lip was being bitten down on to the point of going white.

"Are you sure?"

Though her hands, already clenching the pillows, squeezed tighter, Callie nodded again.

"You haven't made any noises so far. Am I doing something wrong?"

She shook her head.

"Alrighty. But if something feels good, please do speak up!"

She nodded.

Papyrus went back to his task.

Callie bit down even harder on her lip. She'd never been this vulnerable before, not for anyone. The girl's nude body was splayed out on the bed for anyone to see. Her thin frame seemed rather tiny among the fluffed pillows and thick comforter, though it did provide some semblance of security. While she had gotten used to having her breasts exposed... well... having Papyrus's face buried between her legs was something else entirely.

His tongue has been lapping at the sweet pink pearl between her legs for the better part of five minutes. And as his movements got faster, more precise, Callie found it increasingly difficult to keep quiet. Even now, with every barrier gone, Callie felt her old thoughts about what was happening going through her head.

This was wrong.

She shouldn't like this.

She shouldn't want this.

She shouldn't think it feels good when he does that.

She shouldn't...

"Ah!" The girl gasped.

Whatever Papyrus just did, it broke her concentrated silence. For a moment, he stopped and looked up.

"So that was the key, then! I'll keep doing that!"

Oh no no no no no...

His face once again disappeared and Callie began to feel that spot being abused. Any effort to keep her pleasure to herself was basically useless.

"Ahh... Ah!... ohh... Ahhhh... n-nyah..."

Oh, oh God.

Callie's head thrashed back and forth as her hands began clawing at the blanket. Her whole body began to arch. Though she tried to fight it, Callie could feel a coil of pleasure building up in her abdomen, ready to unwind any moment.

O-oh...

After a particularly loud gasp, followed by some mild spasms, Callie collapsed against the sheets. Noticing her sudden limpness, Papyrus removed himself and sat up.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

Callie gave a short nod.

"How was... did you like that?"

Though it took her a moment to respond this time, she once again nodded.

"...Excellent! Well, now that you're... ready... what position would you like me to..."

Callie finally decided to speak.

"P-Pap, you gotta give me a few minutes. I'm... God, I need to regain my energy."

Papyrus nodded. "Silly me! With all of my stamina and strength, sometimes I forget how easily humans are tired out. I'm so sorry."

"It's... it's okay. You just need to be gentle with me."

The man made his way over to where Callie was, and laid beside her. He twirled a lock of white hair between his fingers.

"Gentle, rough, I'm capable of doing it however you want!"

A rush of heat flooded her cheeks. God, who knew he was such a tease?

"Gentle... for now. Please."

"Of course, Callie. I want this to be good for you, after all! What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't make you comfortable? Why, I wouldn't deserve any of the trust you've given me! And knowing you, it must be a lot."

She looked over at him.

"I... what do you mean?"

He sighed. "It's not as if I don't know this is a scary thing for you. You've been shaking in your boots every time you tried to talk about it! Well, you don't really wear boots, but the principle is the same. So I know talking about us together like this, let alone actually doing it... you must really trust me."

Callie was silent.

"...And of course I am very flattered! I truly appreciate your trust."

Callie rolled onto her side.

"...Do... do you trust me?"

There wasn't even a second thought. "Of course I do! I've trusted you from the very beginning."

"Really? Might... may I ask why?"

"Sure! It's because even though you were obviously upset, and more obviously terrified of me, you were still nice and gave us all a chance. That's more than most humans do!"

The girl looked down. "You... you noticed I was afraid of you, huh?"

"Of course. It wasn't hard to notice the shaking hands and fearful eyes! But it's no matter now!"

He wiped his mouth with his hand.

"Obviously those thoughts have changed."

Callie chuckled. "... That's one way of saying it."

"Indeed! So... how are you feeling?"

It took a moment for her to respond. Her eyes drifted downwards. Papyrus had a hand on his belt buckle. Beneath the fabric of his pants, Callie could see the clear outline of... of...

Oh boy.

"Callie?"

She took a deep breath.

"I'm... I'm ready."

Papyrus undid his belt buckle.

"...What position?"

"I..." She bit her lip. "I don't... I don't know. What position would you like, Pap?"

"Oh no, this is not about me. This night is all for you!"

Callie shifted her head to the side. "No, it's about both of us. Together. I want you to be happy, too. You already did something for me. So it's your turn. What would you like?"

This seemed to please him. A smile grew wide on his face.

"...turn on your side."

She did so.

"There we go. Now let me just..."

Callie heard the distinct sounds of a zipper going down and fabric sliding.

She clutched at the blanket. Her heart was pounding in her chest.

Papyrus grabbed Callie's leg and lifted it up to his hip.

"Is... is this comfortable?"

She nodded, not trusting her own voice. She could feel him pressed against the cusp of her opening.

"Callie..." He said, nearly whispering.

She shifted her eyes to meet his.

"I promise I'll be very, very gentle. Okay?"

Once again, she nodded.

"Are you ready? Can I... you know..."

"...yes." She finally spoke. Though, unfortunately, the girl's voice was just as shaky as she'd feared.

"...Okay."

He entered her. Callie's mouth popped open.

Oh. Oh God. That... oh God.

The sensation wasn't what she had expected. There was no pain. No blood. It was just the sensation of being stretched out, overstuffed. Both were still for a minute.

"Am I... does that feel okay?"

"Y-yeah."

"Okay, okay, good. Excellent."

He pulled himself out almost all the way. Only the very tip was still inside.

Callie braced herself.

Slowly, to an almost painful degree, he slipped back in.

He waited for a moment before repeating the she couldn't see him, Callie could feel Papyrus shaking, struggling to hold himself back. Part of Callie wondered how much he _was_ holding back. The prospect , though intimidating, was a tad arousing.

She noticed one of his hands clawing at the pillows.

He began to move, in and out, at a much more steady pace. Almost by habit, Callie bit down on her bottom lip to suppress any wayward sounds. Papyrus bent down to her ear, still thrusting.

"C-Callie... don't do that. I want to hear you. If it hurts, I want to know."

One hand traveled down to her breast. His fingers teased the sensitive center. This elicited a soft moan.

"And if something feels good, I definitely want to know."

You absolute _tease._

... But, he was right. She couldn't keep fighting herself on this. He was literally inside of her and Callie was still fighting her lust internally. Well, it was high time she let herself lose.

Callie opened her mouth and moaned into the pillow.

"There we go!" He said.

Papyrus picked up the pace a little more. Callie had no problem with this, only offering her vocal approval.

"You're beautiful, you know that, Callie? Just beautiful. Especially from my view of things!" Papyrus whispered this in her ear.

That coil was building back up again. The girl grasped at any yielding surface in order to brace herself.

Papyrus moved his hand lower. Almost as if... he was trying to...

His thrusting was becoming erratic. Though she wasn't exactly experienced, the girl knew what that meant. He was... oh... Oh God...

Callie let out a choked gasp as he finished, spilling himself deep into her. This sensation, combined with the motion of his hand between her legs, helped drive her to her own finish.

Just moments after Papyrus pulled out and fell onto the bed. Callie, on the other hand, barely moved.

"Wowie! That was incredible! You're wonderful, Callie."

"I...I... Thank you."

She was only beginning to process what had just happened.

There was a low chuckle.

"When you get some of your energy back, what position would you like to try next?

 _Next_?

 **A/N: And here it is! This is it! I really hoped it came out alright! Let me know what you all think! Anyways, thanks for reading and for all the wonderful feedback!**


	27. Chapter 27

_Three times._

Callie lay there, her eyes facing the wall beside her. At that moment, she was only beginning to process the tangled mess of events from the night previous. Though still rather drowsy, and more than a little sore, Callie could remember certain key points with absolute clarity.

The most important of those key points being that they had sex _three times._ And that didn't even take into account the... ahem... break activities.

She smacked her lips together. That distinct, salty taste was still ripe in her mouth. Hell, with enough imaginative effort she could feel the echo of heat on her tongue. It wasn't something she thought of with particular arousal, or disgust. Or really anything else. She thought of it in an informative sense. It was something that happened. All of it was.

It was all just... memories... Callie began to drift back off.

Suddenly she heard a knock on the door.

"Pap, bro, are you still asleep?"

Any remaining sleepiness was jolted out of her body. Callie was immediately alert, and all too aware of what had happened last night. Oh God.

Oh God.

Sans was back.

And she was still naked.

Callie wriggled under the covers as much as physically possible. She even made an attempt to wrangle her mess of hair under the blankets with her. There was no way in hell Sans was going to see her like this.

Beside her, Callie felt the mattress shift in a rather violent manner.

"Y-yes Sans! I mean no! No, I am fully awake and will be out to join you in mere moments! It just takes time to look as good as I do, you know. I always aim to look my best!"

Callie could hear him scrambling to find some clothes as he spoke.

Sans was quiet for a moment.

"Of course, Pap. Of course. Just thought I'd check in. For a moment there, I thought my laziness had finally rubbed off on ya."

There was a distinct jingle as Papyrus hastily fastened his belt buckle.

"In your dreams, Sans!"

The older brother chuckled from the other side of the door.

"Well, that's what I do best. I guess I'll be seein' you in a few."

He walked away. Callie breathed out a sigh of relief and pulled the covers back. Her eyes, now uncovered, fell on her boyfriend. Though mostly dressed, he was still in the process of buttoning up his shirt.

... She couldn't help but wish he'd leave it open.

"Good morning!" He greeted.

She looked up from his chest to his face. Callie felt a blush rise in her cheeks.

"G-good morning, Pap."

He finished buttoning.

"...How are you?" He asked.

There was something in his voice that caught Callie's attention. She could tell that he wasn't asking that question as a mere pleasantry.

"I'm... I'm good." She replied. "...Very good, actually."

Though her body was sore, and she was still reeling at everything that had taken place, Callie felt an immense sense of... relief? Was that the right word? It was like a big, painful splinter had been removed from her side. Or she'd gotten a long-needed drink of water.

...Well that was one way to put it.

"Are you sure? Did I... I didn't hurt you, did I?"

She shook her head.

"Just made me a little sore. But after... well... three times, that's kind of expected."

He seemed relieved, if only for a moment. Papyrus tensed up a bit. The next question out of his mouth was something she'd never expected to hear from him.

"Was I okay?"

"I...okay?"

"Yes. Did I... meet your expectations?" His inquiry came out with a hint of discomfort. Perhaps something even more than that.

Callie sat up in the bed, not even making an attempt to cover her body.

"Pap, you were great. Absolutely great. I... I loved it."

He seemed to relax again.

"...Good, good. I...I'm very glad! I was hoping you would."

Callie cocked her head to the side. She couldn't help but be a bit surprised. He had always followed up a question like that with a bit of bravado, an exclamation of confidence. But... no.

But before she could think too much about the implications of that, another knock came at the door. Callie was quick to hide herself beneath the blankets again.

"I am almost ready, Sans!"

From her hiding spot, Callie could hear the rustling of fabric as Papyrus began to put away any clothing from the night previous.

"Uh-huh, I'm sure you are. But uh..." She heard him crack the door open. "...These tell me there's someone who ain't so ready."

The girl felt her stomach drop. She remembered, in that moment, that most of her clothing had been left in the living room. Her dress... Oh God, her bra... the only article she had in the immediate area was her panties. And even those had found a home dangling from one of the bed posts.

Neither brother spoke. There was only the sound of muted footsteps as Papyrus walked over to collect her outfit.

"Mornin', Cal." Sans called.

Knowing full well that the jig was up, Callie stuck her hand out from under the blanket to wave.

"...Hi Sans."

"Have a good date?"

"Sans..." Papyrus said.

"Yes bro?"

"May I kindly ask you to leave? Callie needs to get dressed."

"Of course, Pap. If I thought for one second that you'd let me stay, I'd be really boned." He chuckled. "Though I guess that'd make two of us, eh Cal?"

Callie could feel her cheeks growing red.

"Out. Now." Papyrus ordered.

He seemed to have obeyed, because just a few moments later Papyrus closed the door with some force. He let out an exasperated sigh.

"I am going to kill him one of these days, I swear."

Callie once again uncovered herself. Papyrus handed her the clothing.

"Thanks, Pap."

She stood up as she put on her bra again. Oh, it was so strange to think that Sans, Sans of all people, had seen her bra. Not that it was much to look at. But still. Part of her felt disconcerted by the fact that he now knew what she wore under her clothing.

...Then again, he also knew she was now officially having sex with his brother. So the bridge of modesty had kind of already burned to the ground on that one.

"...You know, it's almost a shame to see you put your clothes back on again. You're even more beautiful the way you are right now!"

She smiled. Her make-up was ruined, her hair was a nest of white, and her bare skin revealed an entire network of hidden veins. But she had a feeling that wasn't what he was taking notice of.

"... Don't worry, Pap." She said. "You'll be seeing me the way I right now a lot."

Suddenly, she paused. This was the first time she'd entertained the idea of what was going to happen after this first night. Though she had known that it couldn't be the only time they'd be... well... together... this confirmation was still a bit of a shock.

This was marking a new phase in their relationship. An entirely new phase to both of them.

"Really? Wowie! Well, I'm looking forward to it! I hope this means you're...well... looking forward to it as well!"

She turned to him.

"...I am, Pap." Callie said, a little unsure of her own words until they were out. "I am."

 **A.N: And here's the next chapter! Sorry it took so long, everyone. It took me a while to figure out how to approach this after everything that just happened. I figured something a little lighter, humorous would work. Also, to be honest, I got side-tracked with other writing projects. I'm working on a different fanfic, as well as a fantasy novel! Anyways, thank you so much for sticking with me and for all the support!**


	28. Chapter 28

Callie had never been happier that it was spring break. The students who hadn't gone home were either still sleeping or nursing a hangover. This, of course, meant the town was mostly dead for the morning. And that meant getting home with relatively few people spotting her.

Even so, Sans offered to give her a ride back to campus. "As a precaution", he said. Didn't want her walking through town.

Callie knew what he was really doing. And, despite this knowledge, she took him up on his offer. Now here she was, awkwardly huddled against herself in some vain attempt to not feel exposed. Not that it did much.

"So..." Sans began. "...Whatcha think of Pap's new job?"

This broke the tense silence that had been permeating the car. Callie sighed.

"I-it's great. I'm so happy for him."

"Yeah, he's happy about it too. He needed it. Pap gets antsy without something to do."

Callie nodded, agreeing. She decided to use this as a way to ask something that'd been on her mind since the night before.

"Uh... say, do you know how he got the job in the first place? With all the prejudice against monsters... I was just surprised. In a good way, of course."

Sans got quiet for a moment. His phalanges gripped tighter on the wheel.

"... He didn't tell ya, huh?"

She didn't even need to ask what he didn't tell her.

"No, he didn't."

He sighed.

"Guess he didn't wanna upset ya."

"...What happened, Sans?" She asked.

There was another moment of silence. "An incident. 'Bout a week ago he went to ask about an open position, and the person he asked treated him like... well... how you'd expect someone to treat a monster."

Callie could practically feel the anger emanating from Sans.

"Called him all the regular names. Didn't bother Pap, until.. well... he mentioned you."

The girl felt her stomach drop.

"Me?"

"Yeah. Now Pap didn't tell me exactly what the punk said, for uh... obvious reasons... but it really upset him. He said something like 'How dare you speak of someone that way, I simply cannot stand for this'. Well, it got the attention of a manager."

Callie had a feeling that she knew where this was going.

"The manager fired the employee and offered Papyrus his position as compensation." She said, nearly whispering.

"Oh not just the position."

Callie cocked her head to the side.

"Because you were the one who'd been insulted, Pap asked if he could have a private reservation set up just for you."

"And they... said yes?"

Sans shrugged. "They didn't want a lawsuit on their hands. Pap'd never do that, ya know, but they didn't know that. They way they saw it, it was easier to just give him what he wanted rather than to get mixed up in all the legal crap. Which they probably couldn't afford anyway. It's a family-owned restaurant, after all."

Callie was quiet. She didn't know what shocked her more, the incident itself or the fact that Papyrus used his leverage to give her such a wonderful evening. He was making up for a slight against her that she never even knew about. And he didn't even say anything about it afterwards. It was just... incredible. It colored the entire date in a different light.

But there was still something that bothered her. Something she needed to know.

"Sans...?"

"Yeah?"

"...What was the name of the employee? Do you know?"

"Pap said his name was Caleb, I think. Why?"

Immediately there was a hot flash of anger boiling inside her.

" _That son of a bitch!"_

This exclamation seemed to stun Sans. She swore she saw him flinch away a bit.

"I.. I'm sorry. It's just... I know that guy. He served Pap and I on our first date. And he goes to my school. He tried to ask me out because I "deserved better than a monster"."

Sans let out a low chuckle. "I can guess how that played out."

"Yeah. He didn't take rejection well."

Especially from someone on the lowest rung of the social ladder, she thought.

"Eh. He got what he deserved. And in my humble opinion, that restaurant got a much better employee to take his place."

"I agree." Callie said. "But... do you think he's gonna try and start something over this? Since he goes to the same school as me and all..."

Sans shrugged. "Hard to tell. But if he does, well... let's just say he's gonna have a bad time."

There was something slightly unnerving about the way he said that. Hearing Sans give a proper threat, even in such a vague way, was not a pleasant thing. She felt for anyone who would have to be on the receiving end of those threats. Even for Caleb. But Callie certainly felt a bit safer now.

"Thanks, Sans." She said.

"No prob." He replied. "Well, now that's cleared up... mind if I ask?"

She sighed.

"Go ahead."

The topic was going to come up sooner or later, she knew. And besides, he'd answered all of her questions, so it was only fair to answer his.

"So how long have you and Pap...?"

"Just... just last night."

"Ah. I had a feeling. It explains a lot."

The girl lowered her head in embarrassment.

"I didn't mean to worry him."

"I know. To he honest, I was wondering if I needed to remind you of our little chat a while ago. But uh... looks like ya managed to sort that out without my help. Which, considering the issue, I think was for the best for both of us."

Callie gave a small, sheepish smile. "To be honest with you, Sans, I was considering asking you about it. But I didn't think that was something I should be bringing up with my boyfriend's brother."

Sans laughed.

"I'm glad ya felt that way." He said.

They arrived at the campus entrance.

"Welp, here's your stop. I can walk you home, if ya like."

"Nah, I can make it. It uh... might give the wrong impression."

Callie gestured towards her somewhat rumpled wardrobe and ruined make-up.

"Enough said. Then I guess I'll seeya round, Callie."

"Seeya around, Sans. Thanks for the ride."

"No problem."

With that, Callie exited the car and began making her way back to her dorm.

She really needed to get out of this dress.

* * *

It was a very lucky escape. Callie had been worried that there would be some people getting up by now, perhaps making their way to the campus markets for pain killers, but no. It was still only noon. The place was deserted.

God bless lazy college students.

Now here she was, fumbling through her purse to find her room key. There was still the risk of a another person from the hall seeing her, after all. Come on, come on...

There!

With a sigh of relief, the girl unlocked her door and entered the room.

She was greeted a a very startled Sara. As it turns out, she was a state similar to Callie's. Her normally professional looking hair was a complete mess of black stands. Her lipstick was mostly gone, and what wasn't was smeared. Her dress, the same one she'd asked Callie about a while back, was rumpled up.

The two stared at one another for a painfully long amount of time.

"...I guess we're in the same boat here, huh?" It was Sara that finally broke the silence.

"Yep."

Sara chuckled. "Well... then we've got some more catching up to do."

"Definitely." Callie agreed.

They definitely did.

 **A.N: Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long. I hope this was a good installment! Thank you so much for your patience and for all the wonderful feedback! Seeya next time!**


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